


Shuffling the Deck

by Killthespare



Series: All in the Cards [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, Assassins & Hitmen, BAMF Hinata Shouyou, BAMF Kuroo Tetsurou, BAMF Tsukishima Kei, BAMF...everyone really, BROTP Tsukishima & Hinata, Cardverse, Fake Character Death, Gen, M/M, Magic, Mystery, Not Really Character Death, Pirates, Politics, Rating mainly for language and violence, Royalty, Spies & Secret Agents, very important tag for this one
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:53:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 107,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24718567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Killthespare/pseuds/Killthespare
Summary: The Ace of Spades is dead and the Ace of Diamonds killed him.In Cards, Tsukishima explores a truth he’d rather ignore and a conspiracy that may be closer than he thinks. Kenma learns the difficulty of being a King without an Ace. Across an ocean, Kenji Futakuchi chooses between the birthright he was denied or the freedom he’s earned.Meanwhile, Hinata and Kuroo would really, really just like to go home, please.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou(background), Aone Takanobu & Futakuchi Kenji, Hinata Shouyou & Kuroo Tetsurou, Hinata Shouyou & Tsukishima Kei, Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru (background), Kozume Kenma & Kuroo Tetsurou, Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi(background), Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi, others
Series: All in the Cards [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1171301
Comments: 644
Kudos: 653





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys, I've got a few quick notes first.
> 
> First, this work is part of a series. I feel like if you're starting from this second book, most plot things should still be pretty clear but--as a warning--some of the intricacies of the cardverse stuff may be a bit confusing (plus this book will DEFINITELY contain spoilers for the previous one, All in the Cards). 
> 
> With that, here's a few key points on the Card Universe as I've written it in this AU:
> 
> -The Card Kingdom is made up of four minor kingdoms that rule together: Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, and Clubs
> 
> -Minor kingdoms are ruled by their Suit, each having a King (the leader), a Queen (the mage), a Jack (the smartest), and the Ace (the warrior)
> 
> -No gender classifications for the Suit so a woman can be King and a man can be Queen.
> 
> -Queen and King are nor married positions so no arranged marriages here.
> 
> -The Suit knows they are destined to rule by the Mark (symbol on hand, heart, neck, or arm) and the Mark is Claimed when they take over the ruling position and the Mark gets a letter in the middle. If person becomes Unworthy to rule, the letter disappears.
> 
> Last note, since titles can get a bit much, I'm including a list of all the Suit positions at the start of the first few chapters.
> 
> Spades: Kageyama (King), Suga (Queen/ Mage), Tsukishima (Jack), Hinata (Ace)
> 
> Diamonds: Kenma (King), Lev (Queen/ Mage), Yaku (Jack), Kuroo (Ace)
> 
> Hearts: Oikawa (King), Kyotani/ Mad Dog (Queen/ Mage), Yahaba (Jack), Iwaizumi (Ace)
> 
> Clubs: Bokuto (King), Akaashi (Queen/ Mage), Konoha (Jack), Yukie (Ace)
> 
> I SWEAR IT'S LESS CONFUSING IN CONTEXT!
> 
> I appreciate you all and thank you so, so much for reading!

_19 Years Prior_

_Once there were two boys who grew up side by side in barely patched houses, closed in by mountains._

_One liked to sit by the side and read while other children whispered._

_“He doesn’t talk! Why doesn't he talk? Do you think he’s mute?”_

_Another boy snickered. “I bet he forgot how.”_

_“Maybe he’s stupid.” The boy tossed his head back. “What about it, Kozume? Are you so stupid you forgot how to talk?”_

_The small boy didn’t answer, not even looking up from his book; but, another voice answered for him._

_“Oh, I don’t think that’s it…”_

_The group of boys jumped, turning to find sharp eyes and a smirk wielded like a weapon, pointed solely at them._

_Even at eight years old, a smirking Kuroo Tetsuro was a vicious, dangerous little thing._

_“You’re not worth his time,” Kuroo said bluntly._

_The tallest of the boys blustered. “You can’t say that to us! You’re just a--”_

_“Leave,” Kuroo ordered, not even bothering to look at them as he shoved his way through the group. He tossed a look over his shoulder, eyes narrowing. “Before I actually make you regret it.”_

_The smartest of the group looked at the bow held at Kuroo’s side and listened to the biting edge in his voice. He dragged his other friends away and the clearing once again fell to silence._

_Kuroo walked forward, crouching down in front of Kenma. “I told you to find me if they were bothering you again.”_

_The younger boy finally dragged his eyes away from the book._

_Kenma blinked. “Hmm?”_

_“.....You didn’t even notice them, did you?” Kuroo sighed, falling back in a slouch._

_He reached out, fidgeting at Kenma’s gloves to make sure they hid the Mark. Kenma put up with the action for all of a few moments before he lightly waved Kuroo’s hands away, turning back down to his book._

_“Ah, my King,” Kuroo tipped his head back at the sky, “how will this Ace ever protect you if you don’t even notice your attackers?”_

_“They would have gotten bored and left eventually,” Kenma said quietly. “I don’t know why I should be bothered by it.”_

_Kuroo rolled his eyes at the old argument. “What are you reading?”_

_“History.”_

_“Must be pretty engrossing, then.” Kuroo’s smile took on a teasing edge. “You always get into your own world when you’re fired up about a book.”_

_Kenma’s frown was minute. “I do_ not _get fired up.”_

_“Do, too.”_

_“Do not.”_

_“Do too.”_

_“Do not.”_

_Two boys sat between barely patched houses, closed in by mountains. The younger boy stayed with eyes stuck down in a book. He was not an easy boy to know. He was quiet and as often forgotten as he was seen and judged. He preferred to watch and listen over talking, turning observations over in his mind like a locksmith shifted gears._

_Which is perhaps what made it so ironic that he never noticed the way the other boy watched him. But, the other boy was smart as well. He was sharp in the same way an arrow was, dangerous and ready to be pointed in the right direction._

_And, eight years old and with a bone deep gravity too heavy for his small body, Kuroo Tetsuro quietly made a vow even if Kozume Kenma would never hear it._

I’m going to build a kingdom around you.

  
  
  
  


_\-----_

_18 Years Prior_

_“Prince Futakuchi Kenji! Get away from that window immediately! It’s storming!”_

_The eight year old pouted. “But I want to see the ships!”_

_Otsuka Tadao, royal advisor to the Futakuchi Islands, just sighed and steered the child away. “There won’t be ships tonight, Kenji. Not in this weather.”_

_“Oh my,” came a soft voice, turning kind eyes to the window. Kenji’s Aunt Maemi, recently married and barely a dozen years older than the boy himself, laid a hand on her new nephew's shoulder. “I certainly hope everybody made it to the docks in time.”_

_Her husband, Lord Hotaka scoffed, cheeks already gone ruddy with drink. “Don’t give them your pity, my dear. I’ve served two decades in that navy and the only ones still out tonight are fools, desperate souls, and pirates.”_

_“Pirates!” Kenji looked up excitedly. “There are pirates out there?”_

_“Only until we hang them,” Lord Hotaka replied dismissively._

_Otsuka and Maemi exchanged a look over the boy’s head before Maemi gently steered her husband out of the room and off to the castle’s private suites._

_When they were gone, Kenji smiled up at his advisor. “I think pirates are cool!”_

_“I know you do.” Otsuka brushed the prince’s hair back fondly. “But, trust me, Kenji, there’s nothing cool about piracy. It’s only the black hearted and the miserable that would dare steal from our royal navy.”_

_Kenji scrunched up his nose. “That’s not the way they are in stories.”_

_“Ah, but what good will a story do you?” Otsuka nodded seriously. “Much better to be a prince.”_

_“But, being a prince is boring! What if I don’t want to be a prince?” Kenji’s smile went mischievous. “I want to be a pirate!”_

  
  
  
  
  
  


_\-----_

_17 Years Prior_

_“Tsuki….”_

_Tsukishima hated his roommate._

_“Tsuki?”_

_“No.”_

_“Tsuki! Come on! I know you’re up. You just answered!”_

_“It’s the middle of the night. Go back to sleep.”_

_“But, Tsuki….”_

_Tsukishima opened his eyes to slits, only to find the orange menace standing beside his bed._

_“I had a nightmare,” Hinata said._

_“I don’t see how that’s my problem.”_

_He huffed. “I had a nightmare and now I can’t sleep.”_

_“So, you decided I couldn’t either,” Tsukishima demanded. “Hinata, go back to bed!”_

_Hinata looked down at his feet, hesitating before…_

_“Can I sleep in your bed tonight?”_

_“What?_ No!”

_“But, it was a bad nightmare, Tsuki,” Hinata pleaded. “A super bad, super scary nightmare! Please!”_

_“I don’t care,” Tsukishima said._

_“It’s only for one night! Please, Tsuki!”_

_“No, you’re eight years old!” Tsukishima shook his head incredulously. “You’re the Ace of Spades! You’re literally training to be an assassin! How can you still be scared of a nightmare!”_

_Hinata ducked his head, looking chastised._

_“It was a_ really _bad nightmare,” he mumbled._

_Tsukishima pointed to the other side of the room. “Go back to your bed!”_

_Reluctantly, Hinata shuffled away and Tsukishima closed his eyes, still annoyed, to the sound of sheets rustling._

_And, then, there was a loud sigh._

_Tsukishima’s eye twitched._

_Then, a groan._

_Tsukishima wrapped his pillow around his head and ignored it._

_Another sound of rustling and then, quietly, a little pained whimper._

_Tsukishima snapped, jolted up and picked a book off the ground to throw it blindly._

_“OW!” Hinata complained, following a satisfying smack._

_“Fine,” Tsukishima announced. “You can stay with me! But_ only _for tonight! And only if you LET ME SLEEP!”_

_Hinata perked up. “Really?”_

_“Just get over here.” Tsukishima sighed, scooting in further to the wall and leaving Hinata just enough space that he would only hang half off the bed._

_Hinata scrambled over and smiled at him softly. “Thanks, Tsuki.”_

_Tsukishima rolled his eyes, hoping it would still be effective in the dark._

_He waited as Hinata settled in beside him, somehow curling easily into the space like a particularly aggravating cat._

_“What was the nightmare about anyway,” Tsukishima asked._

_Hinata shivered._

_“It was terrible,” he finally admitted, voice quiet and almost lost. “I dreamed that I was still in the castle; but, everyone else had left. Takeda, Ukai, Suga, Noya,_ everyone _\--even Kageyama and we never even see_ him _.” Hinata went quiet for another long moment. “You were gone, Tsuki.”_

_Tsukishima hummed, contemplative. “So we all were living somewhere without you?”_

_“Yeah,” Hinata whispered, scooting in closer. “And I knew I’d never see you again.”_

_Tsukishima snorted. “That’s not a nightmare. That sounds perfect.”_

_Hinata punched his arm._

_Tsukishima shoved him out of the bed._

_Neither of them got any more sleep that night._

  
  
  
  
  
  


_\-----_

_The Morning of Diamonds Winter Festival_

The longest day in the life of Tsukishima Kei began far, far too early.

The sound of a knock echoed through the room as he attempted to bury his head further into the pillow.

 _“Go away,”_ he muttered, trying in vain to sink back to unconsciousness.

The knock sounded again, impossibly louder.

“Fine.” The Jack of Spades huffed, pushing out of the bed, annoyed to see that it wasn’t even sunrise when his annoying pest of an Ace had apparently decided to wake him. 

Another knock.

“Fates,” Tsukishima swore, striding to the door of his guest chambers, “Hinata, you better have a _very_ good explanation for waking me up considering you’re not even supposed to _be_ in Diamonds or you _will_ regret--”

He opened the door. It wasn’t Hinata.

“Your Highness,” the Diamonds’ guard he vaguely remembered as Inuoka bowed. “I need you to come with me to the throne room. _Now._ By order of Queen Sugawara of Spades and King Kenma of Diamonds.”

Tsukishima blinked, thrown off for all of a second before instinct took over. 

“Lead the way.”

Inuoka nodded, fingers still twitching at the sword on his hip as he started down the hall.

 _Of course, it’s not Hinata_ , Tsukishima thought absently as he followed, the last dregs of sleep wearing off. Hinata wouldn’t have bothered to knock. He would have come through the window or the ceiling or...well, definitely, nothing as normal as knocking on the door. 

Especially when everyone believed he was still in Spades. Which, honestly, what good was leaving one of the Suit to maintain Spades if he just snuck along the moment they left---supposed “secret” mission or not.

Tsukishima was the kingdom’s spymaster, thank you. He should know _every_ mission their Ace took on, especially ones that brought their Ace to one of the other Card Kingdoms in the middle of a festival. And, rest assured, he _would_ be finding out as soon as he tracked the other man down.

Tsukishima spared another glance at the tense shoulders of the Diamonds’ guard. 

All of that was assuming that Hinata hadn’t already given himself away, which based on the pre-dawn summons by both Suga _and_ Kenma was looking less and less likely.

Tsukishima was going to kill him.

They made it to the throne room, Inuoka pushing open the door, and Tsukishima was halfway to a protest that this mess was definitively _not_ his fault when Suga grabbed his arm and pulled him to the side.

“Tsukishima,” Suga said, voice low, “whatever mission you and Hinata are working on doesn’t matter right now. I _need_ you to tell me the truth. Did Hinata come to Diamonds?”

“I…”

Tsukishima had a momentary sense of deja vu from back when he and Hinata were kids and Suga would catch them doing something they weren’t supposed to do.

This was different. Suga’s eyes were wide, fixed entirely on Tsukishima while his hand continued to grip almost painfully on his arm. 

The Queen of Spades was afraid.

Suga’s face was close, almost blocking out Tsukishima’s view of the rest of the throne room. In the view he had left, the throne room was still dark with pe-dawn gloom. Kenma stood on the other side, flanked again by Inuoka, and staring at the only other occupant of the room--a woman weeping quietly in the corner.

Hinata wasn’t there.

“Tsukishima,” Suga repeated, “do you know if Hinata’s in Diamonds?”

“I...yes,” Tsukishima finally answered, “He found me after the Opening Feast.”

Suga’s eyes fell closed, mouth tightening into a flat line as his shoulders slumped. “He was supposed to stay behind in Spades.”

“I thought he was!” Tsukishima breathed in, regathering his thoughts, “I promise, Suga. I don’t know what he was thinking leaving--”

“Why was he here,” Suga interrupted. “What mission? Please, Tsukishima, we need to know.”

Tsukishima scowled, a bit of the previous night’s annoyance coming back. “I have no idea. _Apparently,_ he decided to work this mission _alone._ Never mind the fact that the whole entire point of having a spymaster is so we don’t--”

“You don’t know.” Suga’s eyes were still wide and his breathing had gotten heavier. “He didn’t mention anything? Anything at all?”

A prickling sense of worry was replacing the annoyance.

“He said he’d tell me in the morning.” Tsukishima looked around the room again. “Suga, if you’re that curious, just find Hinata and ask him.”

Suga’s hand fell away, the urgency in his eyes going with it and leaving behind something hollow.

“We can’t. There’s something you need to hear.”

And with that, Suga’s hand was at his wrist again--gentler this time, almost like Tsukishima was something fragile--pulling him towards the crying woman.

She barely paid him any attention when they approached, still wiping at her eyes. He spared a glance at Kenma’s face, hoping for some hint, but if anything the King of Diamond’s face was even more blank than usual.

“Tsukishima, you remember Diamond’s Assistant Head of Staff,” Suga said softly. “Eshima, could you tell him what you saw?”

The woman looked up, wiping tears away as she tried to compose herself. “He’s….he’s _dead._ I saw him kill the other and then they both _died._ ”

True fear ran up Tsukishima’s spine for the first time that morning. “Who’s dead?”

“The Ace!” Eshima sobbed. “The Ace of Diamonds. _Kuroo!_ He fell down the mountain!”

She pointed and for the first time, Tsukishima saw the ornate stained glass display of the throne room was shattered, revealing the sheer drop of the Mountains of Diamonds beyond it. The floor in front of it had drops of blood scattered seemingly at random, almost as if someone was moving around the room while bleeding.

No one could survive going down the cliffs. Not even an Ace.

Which meant the Ace of Diamonds--which meant _Kuroo_ , the man with the sharp smirk and sharper words that Tsukishima had seen barely hours ago at dinner--was dead.

Beside him, he finally noticed that Kenma’s hands were clenching his arm so tight, his fingers had gone white and bloodless.

“And the other,” Suga urged, “tell us about the one he was fighting.”

“He killed him,” Eshima whispered. “He stabbed him, right through the heart. And then, they tripped and the window broke and then….they both _fell!_ ”

“What did the other look like,” Suga pressed.

Eshima blinked. “He...he was wearing black, all black. Even his mask. It was the Ace of Spades, wasn’t it? Ace Kuroo killed Spades’ Ace!”

_Hinata._

Tsukishima felt cold. Maybe numb was a better word. Around him, he could hear Suga quietly reassuring Eshima but he ignored them, walking instead to the broken window.

Outside it was raining. Soft but heavily in a way Tsukishima was surprised he hadn’t noticed. He looked down out of the window and saw nothing but the rush of a waterfall down hard stone, the only thing in between was a slim ledge three floors down, barely a meter wide.

Tsukishima was the Jack of Spades, the best spymaster in all of Cards, one of the four smartest men in the entire world. If there was anything worth finding out in the entire kingdom, he either knew it or would know it soon. 

“Tsukishima.”

Once again, Suga's hand landed on his shoulder.

“We need to wake the others. They need to know that two of our Aces are dead.”

Tsukishima turned, meeting Suga’s eyes directly.

“They’re not dead.”

  
  
  


\-----

That Hinata woke up was something of a surprise.

That Hinata woke up to complete darkness with a bag over his head, his arms and legs bound, his shoulder dislocated, a litany of bruises and cuts, and still bleeding from a fairly painful chest wound was less of a surprise.

Still it was perhaps due to this variety of other ailments that it took him a moment to notice he was also in imminent danger of drowning.

He was willing to admit he’d had worse mornings.

_Stay calm. Take stock of the situation._

Okay, arms bound but if he shifts a bit he should at least be able to get them lower on his arms.

He braced himself and shifted his arm.

He hissed in pain, a trail of much needed bubbles settling around his face.

Fates, there probably were more painful things to do with a dislocated shoulder but he couldn’t really think of any at the moment.

The ropes lowered just enough for him to slip a spare knife down his sleeve and cut them. The ropes loosened, floating around him as Hinata fought to get his arms out and rip the bag off his head. 

His lungs were beginning to burn.

_Don’t waste time. Focus._

His hands dropped to his legs, the ropes around them dragging with a weight. He started sawing, trying quickly to take stock of the surroundings. Salt water. Sand. Small hints of movement and things brushing passed him in the low light and a shadow of a ship passing above him.

The ocean. He was in the ocean, most likely thrown from a ship. 

Great, now, if only he could remember how he got on a ship?

Last he remembered, he was…

Flashes of black, of night and rain, the shine of a sword, a pitying face and an apology, the thick scent of blood, the weightlessness of falling and the smack of hitting stone too soon.

Oh, fuck, where was Kuroo?

Hinata finished cutting the rope around his legs, frantically looking around to see anything, _anything_ in the dark of the ocean.

Something shifted below him, a bigger shape catching in soft light.

Hinata dove down, without thought, fighting against the tightness in his chest.

The shape started to take form, clearing into a figure tied down the same as Hinata had been.

He was moving, one arm jerking against the ropes.

_He’s alive!_

Hinata swam faster, finally getting close enough to wrap his good arm around the figure and _pull_.

If there was one bright side, at least Kuroo still being tied up made it harder for him to fight back. Hinata didn’t think he had enough energy to keep them both from drowning if Kuroo tried to resist.

They broke the surface and Hinata didn’t think he’d ever been happier to just breathe.

Kuroo was still shifting restlessly against the ropes and Hinata pulled at the bag until it slipped off.

Kuroo coughed, spitting out water, as he blinked at the sudden air.

His eyes focused. “Hinata?”

“Hey, thank Fates, I thought you were _dead._ ” Hinata offered a weak smile. “Stay still while I work on the ropes, okay?”

Confusion flickered on Kuroo’s face before he nodded and Hinata slipped down to cut through his ropes.

 _“Fuck!”_ Kuroo swore. “Arm’s broken. Something’s weird with my knee, too. Maybe some ribs.”

“Sorry about the knee--I probably dislocated it. Oh, um, I think your nose looks broken, too.” Hinata grimaced, trying to cut faster. “But, you’re...feeling like you, right?”

Kuroo blinked before he went pale and nodded once sharply.

“Good. We need to swim.” Hinata swept a glance around them and could almost cry at seeing lights, flickering in the first bit of dawn. “See those docks, there’s the coast. We need to get there.”

“That’s half a mile away,” Kuroo muttered, frowning.

Hinata’s hand tightened on the last rope, looking up to meet Kuroo’s eyes. “Can you make it?”

Kuroo sighed. “Don’t have much choice, do we?”

The last rope broke free and they started swimming.

Hinata’s shoulder protested almost immediately and the salt water stung at his chest until he curled up the hurt arm protectively over it. Hinata bit his lip and tried to focus on the lights. 

_Only the lights. Don’t think of anything else. Just get to the lights._

Hinata took it back. There were no worse mornings. This sucked.

But, he also flat out refused to die in the middle of the ocean _after_ he had already stopped himself from drowning once.

Hinata felt ground under his feet and he stumbled, grabbing at the shore as wet sand pulled through his fingers. 

He pulled, finally hauling himself out of the water and just falling on his back to gasp, looking up at the stars that were already starting to fade away to dawn.

The stars….the stars were wrong.

Hinata blinked and Kuroo fell down to lay beside him.

“.....Kuroo...I….I don’t think we’re in Cards.”

There was quiet for a second before, “...What?”

Hinata sat up, looking towards the dock and the ships anchored there. There were too many of them, the trees around them too different to be Hearts, the shore too unfamiliar to any Hinata had seen before. He glanced at the ships, trying to spot the flag and…

Hinata’s heart beat painfully. “We’re in Futakuchi.”

Silence.

“Futakuchi as in Futakuchi Islands,” Kuroo asked, low and dangerous.

“Yeah.”

“As in, _the Futakuchi Islands_ , the country that’s had a trade embargo and _naval fucking blockade_ around it since before the Hearts Civil War?”

Hinata swallowed. “Yes.”

“Then, how,” Kuroo ground his teeth, “...then, _how_ did we _get_ to Futakuchi?”

Hinata shook his head. “I don’t...I don’t know.”

There’s another beat of absolute quiet, a moment on a knife’s edge before…

 _“Fuck!_ ” Kuroo beat his fist on the ground. “Fuck! They’re going to think we’re _dead_ ! We fell out the Fates begotten window! _I’m_ surprised we aren’t dead!” He paused, looking up at Hinata with horrified eyes. “Eshima...she saw...she saw me _stab_ you. They’ll think...Hinata, everyone’s going to think we’re dead and that I’m the one that _killed_ you!”

Hinata looked down and nodded. “Yeah, probably..”

The color was draining from Kuroo’s face rapidly. “Fates, we need to tell them! Hinata, we need to warn them that….that….”

“I know.”

“Kenma...Kenma’s going to think I’m dead,” Kuroo whispered softly. “He...he probably already does.”

Hinata didn’t say anything.

“Is there any good news?”

Hinata shrugged. “It looks like a sunny day?”

Kuroo buried his face in his hands, taking deep stuttering breaths.

Hinata let him, glancing away to give Kuroo time to pull himself back together. Instead, Hinata looked out onto the sand and the ocean and the hundreds of miles that separated them from home.

When he looked back, Kuroo had steadied himself at least marginally and the person that was staring at Hinata was the Ace of Diamonds--The Chessmaster, the strategist of Diamonds’ military. “Hinata, what happened last night?”

Hinata hesitated. “It’s...it’s kind of a long story.”

“Hinata,” Kuroo said sharply. “We almost died a few hours ago. As far as the rest of the Suits probably know, we are dead. _My King_ thinks I’m a murderer. And that’s...that’s not even counting...what actually happened. I think I can handle a long story.”

That….that was probably fair.

Hinata sighed, closing his eyes.

“Okay, so, it started a month ago…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so, so glad to be back and posting this story and I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! This story will post every two weeks so the next chapter will be out June 27-28th.
> 
> Also! There's art! Please check out this absolutely amazing piece of art by lyrealith_creates on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/B_0R1PuASGt/
> 
> Thank you so much for reading, guys!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the usual reminder key points (I added one from last chapter because it'll be important here) and the summary of the Suits:
> 
> -The Card Kingdom is made up of four minor kingdoms that rule together: Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, and Clubs
> 
> -Minor kingdoms are ruled by their Suit, each having a King (the leader), a Queen (the mage), a Jack (the smartest), and the Ace (the warrior)
> 
> -No gender classifications for the Suit so a woman can be King and a man can be Queen.
> 
> -Queen and King are nor married positions so no arranged marriages here.
> 
> -The Suit knows they are destined to rule by the Mark (symbol on hand, heart, neck, or arm) and the Mark is Claimed when they take over the ruling position and the Mark gets a letter in the middle. If person becomes Unworthy to rule, the letter disappears.
> 
> -Ace's have an extra, unique power known as Ace's power. They're pretty small powers, honestly, not like major super powers or anything--just a bit more insight/ ability than a normal person. Kuroo has strength and weakness assessment. Hinata has enhanced vision and speed. Iwaizumi has strength and healing. Yukie has a few seconds of precognition. Technically magic but the Aces don't have to be good at magic to use it, it's Fate magic so instinct. Tend to be noticeable by slight magic glow when active.
> 
> Last note, since titles can get a bit much, I'm including a list of all the Suit positions at the start of the first few chapters.
> 
> Spades: Kageyama (King), Suga (Queen/ Mage), Tsukishima (Jack), Hinata (Ace)
> 
> Diamonds: Kenma (King), Lev (Queen/ Mage), Yaku (Jack), Kuroo (Ace)
> 
> Hearts: Oikawa (King), Kyotani/ Mad Dog (Queen/ Mage), Yahaba (Jack), Iwaizumi (Ace)
> 
> Clubs: Bokuto (King), Akaashi (Queen/ Mage), Konoha (Jack), Yukie (Ace)
> 
> I SWEAR IT'S LESS CONFUSING IN CONTEXT!

_ A Month Prior to Diamonds Winter Festival _

_ “Do you think I should take up juggling,” Hinata asked conversationally, balancing two apples carefully on the back of his hand. _

_ Yachi looked up from her shopping list and giggled. “With produce? Probably not.” _

_ “Why?” _

_ Yachi pointed and Hinata turned to see a wizened old shopkeeper glaring at him with the force of a thousand suns. _

_ He yelped, tossing the apples lightly and catching them back in his palms. “Sorry, Mrs. Imai!” _

_ “We’ll take the bushel,” Yachi added, picking up a basket and laying a few coins in their place.  _

_ The old woman continued to glare at them as Yachi deftly steered them both away and through the market. _

_ “Wow, you weren’t kidding, she really  _ does  _ hate you,” Yachi whispered in awe. “Why?” _

_ “I might’ve knocked down her table once,” Hinata muttered. _

_ Yachi stared at him. _

_ “I was nine!” Hinata shook his head. “And I fixed it back! You’d think she’d have gotten over it by now.” _

_ Yachi laughed, shoving the basket in his arms to carry. “Come on, we still need more grain.” _

_ “Don’t we usually have deliveries for this?” _

_ “We ran short this week.” _

_ Hinata frowned, looking over at the palace’s Head of Staff and Personal Assistant to the Jack of Spades. “And the cooks sent you to get it?” _

_ “I volunteered.” Yachi grinned. “I like the market.” _

_ “Then, why am I here?” _

_ She winked. “Because you weren’t busy and I don’t like carrying stuff” _

_ Hinata pouted, mainly for effect. Yachi poked at his side, laughing as he spluttered and slapped at her hands. _

_ “Oooh,” Yachi’s head darted to the side, “wait here, that’s Mr. Shoji packing up. I wonder if he has any more truffles.” _

_ And, then she was off and Hinata was left standing alone in the middle of the street--Ace of Spades, assassin, spy, a leader of the Card Kingdom, and current bag boy. _

_ He leaned the basket against the buildings and picked up some apples to juggle. _

_ All in all, it was a fairly good afternoon. _

_ In Spades, fall was just starting to blow away into an early winter and brightly colored leaves still brushed through the streets of the capital’s market. The warmth of the weather had already given way to a chill in the air that wasn’t yet biting and Hinata thought that it was a perfectly lovely day to spend in the presence of Spades’ people. _

_ And, then, a hand gripped his shoulder and pulled him roughly into an alley. _

_ Hinata dropped the apples, arm already moving for the knife in his sleeve when-- _

_ “Hinata!” _

_ Takagi Aoi, local fisherman and small time smuggler, stared back at him with a pale face and wide, wide eyes. _

_ Hinata blinked, flicking the knife back up his sleeve before the other could notice it. “Aoi? What’s--” _

_ “Shh, shh,” Aoi’s hand flew to cover Hinata’s mouth, eyes darting around in panic, “Be quiet. We have to be quiet, we can’t let them hear us!” _

_ Hinata straightened, lowering his voice. “Who’s them?” _

_ “I can’t tell you.” Aoi shook his head. “Look, I’m sorry, Hinata, I didn’t want to get you involved; but, I needed to tell someone and….,” he took a breath. “You’re our Suit’s official manservant, right?  _ All  _ of the Suit?” _

_ Hinata frowned. “...Yeah?” _

_ “Can you contact the Ace of Spades,” Aoi asked bluntly. _

_ “I don’t, um, I don’t really work with the Ace much,” Hinata immediately denied. “Sorry, never even met him! If you want to contact the Ace, the best way is to tell the Jack of Sp--” _

_ “I can’t!” Aoi gripped Hinata’s collar, pulling him forward urgently. “Listen, Hinata! This is important, life or death kind of important, that the Jack of Spades doesn’t hear about this! Please!” _

_ “Why not?” Hinata’s frown deepened. “Aoi, why can’t Tsukishima know?” _

_ Aoi’s shoulders slumped. “I can’t tell you. I’m sorry, Hinata, I can only tell the Ace. Do you think you can get him to meet me or not?” _

_ Hinata pressed his lips together, watching as Aoi was all but shaking apart, eyes still jumping to every shadow. _

_ “Yeah,” Hinata said finally. “I think I know how to find him.” _

  
  
  
  
  
  


_ \----- _

Hinata tore off his mask, wincing at the way it pulled at the barely bandaged wound over his chest.

He jogged the rest of the steps to where Kuroo was still waiting at the shore.

“Good news,” Hinata hooked his thumb, pointing further up the shore. “The docks we saw are attached to a merchant town. I got us some clothes. Here.”

He tossed the small bundle to Kuroo.

Kuroo frowned, looking between Hinata’s all black and honestly highly suspicious uniform to his own what he thought was a fairly normal vest and tunic ensemble.

The barely risen dawn had finally faded into early morning and it was still the absolute worst day of Kuroo’s life.

“What’s wrong with my clothes,” he asked.

“Nothing.” Hinata shrugged before looking like he regretted it, holding a hand to the shoulder held in a makeshift sling. “They’re great if you want to look like royalty.” He glanced back at Kuroo. “Or, well, kind of blood soaked royalty that just got mugged and left for dead.”

Kuroo thought that was a regrettably fair assessment and followed Hinata’s lead of shrugging off his old, battered, and sand crusted clothes for the coarse but far less conspicuous ones.

A thought occurred to him. “Wait, how did you get these? Did you steal them?”

The assassin gave him a look. “Do you have any money?”

Kuroo did not. Another tally mark to the ever growing list of why this was the worst day in the entire history of horrible shitty days.

“If it helps, I  _ did  _ pay for the book.” Hinata nodded to the book by his clothes. “I only had two coins so it’s not like we could have gotten anything better.”

“Then, why did you get a  _ book _ ?”

“Kageyama likes books,” Hinata said, stubborn in a way that warned against further argument. “I’ll give it to him when we get back.”

_ Oh.  _ Kuroo swallowed thickly.

Right, because they  _ will  _ get back. They were trapped here now--apparently coin less, injured, and presumed dead--but they  _ would  _ find a way back. 

Even if it killed them.

Their Suits were in danger and Kuroo may still not know much about how the Ace of Spades operated outside of rumors and tall tales but he  _ did  _ know Aces. 

They’d find a way to protect them.

Which reminded him. 

He looked over at Hinata. “You really didn’t tell anyone? I mean I get not telling Tsukishima; but,  _ no one _ ?”

Hinata went quiet.

“No,” he admitted reluctantly “I was going to tell Tsuki this morning, I just wanted proof before…,” Hinata cut himself off. “I left my notes with Yachi before I left Spades….but, they’re in code and I didn’t tell her what I was working on so….,” he offered a half smile. “If she hears I’m dead, I’m sure she’ll give them to Tsuki so at least they’ll have the early parts, right?”

“But nothing about last night,” Kuroo concluded. 

Hinata grimaced in agreement.

He sighed. “Alright, so Futakuchi Islands. What do you know about them?”

Hinata frowned in thought, turning over his beat up uniform in his hands and steadily pulling out what Kuroo thought was a frankly unnecessary assortment of stuff. Kuroo stopped keeping track after the third knife and the second pack of powder he couldn’t even begin to identify.

“Okay,” Hinata said finally, “island chain made up of….twenty-two? Maybe twenty-three islands. Um, let’s see, no standing ground military; but, really strong Royal Navy that also operates as their guards. They’ve been led by the Futakuchi royal family ever since their founding like three hundred years ago. Current leader is King Futakuchi Hotaka and his wife, Queen Futakuchi Maemi. There were a lot of rumors King Hotaka killed his brother, the former king, but nobody really knows because….”

“Because,” Kuroo pressed.

“But, you already know all this.” Hinata rolled his eyes. “Because that was when Futakuchi abruptly declared themselves isolationist and set up their Iron Wall blockade--no one’s been able to get anything in or out of here in fifteen years. There, happy?”

“Not even you or Tsukishima,” Kuroo asked.

“You really don’t think we’d tell the rest of you if we did,” he huffed before his eyes slid to the side. “....well, alright, we might have tried to sneak a few informants in. Just to see what was happening.”

“What did they say?”

“Nothing,” Hinata answered bluntly. “We never heard from them again.”

Kuroo digested that as Hinata finally finished assembling the small mound from his uniform and deftly plucked out one packet of what looked like oily mud. Then he grabbed a knife.

Kuroo stared. “What are you doing?”

“Changing my hair,” Hinata said before casually flipping the knife and shearing off the hair on either side. “Look, right now, our Suits aren’t the only ones who think we’re dead. The people involved in this think they killed us and that Futakuchi was a good place to dump our bodies. And, for now, I want to keep it that way.” His voice dropped as he sat down the knife and reached for the packet. “We already know one person knows I’m the Ace. Who knows who else he told? But, either way, I don’t want them linking me back to Hinata the servant either.”

“You know it’s creepy when you talk about yourself in third person like that, right,” Kuroo said.

Hinata just grinned, emptying the packet in his hand--which Kuroo could now see was dark, vicious looking goo, ew--and dragging it completely through his hair.

“Who says anyone will see us,” Kuroo asked.

“We gotta get home, right?” Hinata said, hair stuck up in all directions and dripping possibly black oil. “Unless we’re swimming, that means finding a ship and a way to get through the blockade. Which means we need to go to the village and ask around.” He paused. “Plus, finding a healer. Because I’m  _ pretty sure  _ we don’t have internal bleeding, but….”

Kuroo didn’t like the way that trailed off.

Then, another thought hit him, the way that Hinata was carefully dancing around words and not quite saying it.

Kuroo straightened. “You think they’re working with someone in Futakuchi, don’t you?”

Hinata didn’t say anything before he sighed, looking up to meet Kuroo’s eyes.

“How did they get past the Iron Wall?” Hinata titled his head. “Why dump us in  _ Futakuchi  _ of all places? Why not just bury our bodies in Cards?” His lips pressed firm. “I don’t know. There’s too many questions. Taking us all the way out to Futakuchi is so much harder. I don’t get it. Maybe Tsuki would; but, I’ve got no idea. All I know is that I’ve hardly even heard of the Futakuchi Islands in the last decade and now I’m stuck on them.”

Kuroo couldn’t think of anything to say in return and it didn’t look like Hinata really expected him to.

Instead, he was wiping the excess goo out of his hair and standing to wash the rest of it away with ocean water.

He smiled, turning back to Kuroo. “Okay, what do you think?”

Kuroo cocked his head. Honestly, it didn’t look terrible. He’d trimmed it shorter on the sides, while keeping more on the top. With the goo-oil-whatever washed out, it left the hair dyed--a dark auburn brown rather than vivid, noticeable orange.

In the end, anyone who actually knew Hinata probably wouldn’t be fooled but it was enough not to register on first glance.

“How do you know how to do all this,” Kuroo asked in lieu of an answer.

Hinata glared, looking comically offended. “Hey! I am a  _ spy _ ! I know how to make a good disguise!”

Kuroo frowned. “Shit. Do I need to do anything?”

“Um,” Hinata took one long look from Kuroo’s baggy, coarse clothes to the way the purple from his broken nose was slowly expanding out to turn half of his face into a mass of bruise. If asked, Hinata would say Kuroo looked like a drunk that had lost several bar fights rather than royalty.

Hinata winced. “Nah, I think you’re fine.”

Kuroo seemed to take this with just a shrug, thankfully not asking for more of Hinata’s reasoning. Instead, his eyes had taken on a far off look, gazing out into the sea.

“Hey, Hinata,” Kuroo said slowly. “How do we know….how do we know that what happened to  _ me  _ won’t happen to the rest of them?”

Hinata sobered immediately.

“We don’t.” Hinata offered him a hand up. “So, let’s hurry up and warn them, yeah?”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

An ocean away, the Diamond’s meeting room was a cold, deathly silence.

The only sound was the tips of Bokuto’s fingers drumming hard on the table in a sharp, nervous gesture.

“Kotaro,” Akaashi said quietly, too low to be heard if not for how completely still the rest of the room was.

The drumming stopped.

“Is it true,” Bokuto demanded, eyes torn between Kenma and Suga. “Are they really dead? Did Kuroo really--” His jaw snapped shut before he could finish.

The entire table looked to the King of Diamonds and the Queen of Spades. Kenma didn’t answer, regarding them back with an utterly blank expression that hadn’t shifted once the entire morning.

Suga shifted uncomfortably. “We have some disagreement about what happened.”

“What does that mean,” Yaku asked. “You said that Eshima saw Kuroo stab Hinata and then they both fell down the falls. How can…,” The Jack of Diamonds ducked his head down, taking a single deep breath and trying to tamper the emotion out of his voice. “How can there be any disagreement there?”

“They’re still alive,” Tsukishima said bluntly.

Suga sighed. “Tsukishima, we can’t--”

“No, Suga,” Kageyama interrupted, voice steady but face still an ashy pale. Out of courtesy, he’d been told the story before the meeting and already heard both his Jack’s and his Queen’s arguments. He nodded firmly at Tsukishima. “If Tsukishima says they’re still alive, then they’re still alive.”

“See, even our King agrees.” Tsukishima turned to address the rest of the table. “They’re still alive. I’m sure of it.”

Lev drew out a long breath, a laugh that almost sounded like a whimper trailing off at the end. “Fates!  _ Fates! _ ” Lev dragged a hand through his hair and when he looked back up, a slightly manic version of his ever present smile was obstinately back in place. “Alright, cool, then where are they? And what  _ actually  _ happened?”

“Wait,” Konoha spoke up, frowning at Tsukishima. “How do you know they’re alive?”

“It’s simple,” Tsukishima answered. “The blood on the ground was all Hinata’s. Not even a drop came from Kuroo until the broken window. Suga’s magic already confirmed it. If Hinata was in his uniform like Eshima said he was, that meant he was armed-- _ heavily  _ armed, including poisons. But, judging by the blood, he was the only one injured while in the room,  _ not  _ Kuroo.”

Bokuto frowned. “And that’s a good thing?”

“It means Hinata wasn’t fighting back,” Tsukishima surmised. “Whatever happened, Hinata had time to move around the room while injured; but, chose not to attack Kuroo--or, at least, not lethally.”

“Or he couldn’t get a hit in,” Yaku said.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “Oh please.”

“Or,” Suga argued softly, “it could just mean Hinata was too surprised he was being attacked by Kuroo in the first place. Or that, with whatever they were fighting about, he didn’t want to kill Kuroo anyway.”

Tsukishima glared.

Akaashi drew his attention away. “Even if Hinata wasn’t also trying to kill Kuroo, that doesn’t mean they’re alive now.”

“It means there’s more to the story,” Tsukishima said. “Eshima only saw the end, who knows what happened before that? What we at least know is that Hinata was injured but wasn’t lethally fighting back and that they both fell through the window.” He narrowed his eyes at Suga, daring him to counter. “ _ And  _ we know someone else was there.”

The words washed over the room.

Konoha leaned forward immediately. “There was someone else?”

“We can’t know that.” Suga was already shaking his head.

“We do,” Tsukishima said firmly. “There’s a ledge three stories down.  _ That’s  _ where they landed after they fell from the window,  _ not  _ the falls. But, the ledge was wiped clean. Not a hint of blood,  _ nothing _ . Which meant whoever wiped it clean before Eshima could find the guard was already close, they  _ knew  _ about what was happening.” The Jack of Spades leaned back, spreading his hands in conclusion. “And I’m betting whoever that is also has Kuroo and Hinata.”

“You think they’ve been captured,” Lev blurted incredulously.

Tsukishima nodded. “It’s the most likely option. Falling three stories and likely already injured, it would have been easy to secure them--even for Aces. Luckily, it seems they’re keeping them alive or they would have just killed them and left the bodies.”

Suga pinched the bridge of his nose, the usual softness for once sorely tested by exhaustion and grief. “Tsukishima, we’ve been over this. Or the blood was washed away by the rain.”

“All of it?” Tsukishima raised an eyebrow imperiously. “And, if so, then why aren’t they still on the ledge?”

“Because it’s a narrow ledge and too easy to slide off,” Suga said, finally on his feet. “ _ Or  _ because their bodies never made it to the ledge in the first place and  _ fell down the falls _ !”

“Hinata knows the Spires of Diamonds better than anyone,” Tsukishima argued back. “Eshima said he was conscious. He could control their fall enough to make it to the ledge.”

_ “He was stabbed in the chest! _ ” Suga yelled.

Tsukishima glared back. “He could do it.”

Suga just sighed heavily, falling back into his chair and looking up at his Jack sadly.

“Tsukishima,” he said with a gentleness that Tsukishima hated, “we can’t know that.”

“They’re alive,” Tsukishima said, just as stubborn.

Suga didn’t answer, turning back to the rest of the table who were watching the two with wary expressions as if not sure whether to interrupt.

“My tracking spell isn’t coming back with anything either,” Suga said.

“Which means they’re on the move or out of range,” Tsukishima surmised.

_ Or dead.  _ But, no one added that this time.

“If they’re out of range, more people would help me expand the scope,” Suga said, looking to his fellow Queens and receiving nods in return.

“Of course, Suga,” Akaashi agreed.

“Wait.” Bokuto was frowning, looking to Suga to Tsukishima to Kageyama. “Why was Hinata even here in the first place? I thought he was the one staying back in Spades this festival?”

For all Cards festival, it was tradition that at least one member of every Suit stayed behind in their respective capitals to rule while the others were away.

Kageyama was now frowning, too, glancing up at Tsukishima and Suga.

“He was,” Suga agreed. “We didn’t know he was here until he approached Tsukishima last night.”

“Apparently he was on a mission,” Tsukishima added begrudgingly.

Kenma blinked, finally turning catlike eyes up to meet the spymaster.

“What mission,” Kenma asked.

Tsukishima gritted his teeth. “I don’t know. He didn’t tell me.”

“I thought you and Hinata worked on all the missions together,” Kageyama said.

Tsukishima didn’t answer so Suga took over.

“They do,” he answered, addressing the rest of the Suits as well. “It’s a policy, actually. We started it after our last Ace, Udai Tenma, was lost on an unknown mission. All Ace of Spades missions are known by at least two people--usually, Hinata and Tsukishima.” His eyes flickered over. “We’re not sure why Hinata was working on this one alone.”

“He said he’d tell me in the morning,” Tsukishima said flatly. “Apparently, he ran into Kuroo first.”

“So, let me get this straight,” Konoha said. “We have two Aces possibly dead or possibly captured, a member of Diamonds Suit apparently attempting to kill one of Spades, and the Ace of Spades--our country’s top spy and assassin--as far as we know here on a mission so secret that he didn’t even tell his own spymaster about it. Does that cover everything?”

No one in the room said anything and a long moment passed in tense silence.

On the far side of the table, Oikawa--King of Hearts and newest of the Suit members--leaned forward and spoke for the first time all meeting. “Well….not quite everything.”

Around him, the rest of the Hearts Suit were staying noticeably quiet. Even Kyotani, the Mad Dog of Hearts and by far the most volatile of all the Suits, was sitting in tense, angry silence with an expression of extreme discomfort.

Oikawa glanced at his Queen and Ace before sighing. “Alright, then if no one else is going to say it, then I will.”

“Oikawa,” Iwaizumi muttered, but it was a halfhearted warning at best.

“It needs to be said,” Oikawa told him, firm but not unkind. He looked bluntly at the rest of the table. “How do we know Kuroo still has his Mark?”

The reaction was immediate.

“No way!” Bokuto slammed his fist on the table. “There’s no way Kuroo was declared Unworthy!”

“Yeah!” Lev was on his feet a second behind, glaring at Oikawa.

Oikawa was unperturbed, looking instead to the rest of Diamonds. “Can we know that? Has anyone seen his Mark recently?”

Yaku frowned. “Even if Kuroo  _ was  _ declared Unworthy--which he’d  _ never  _ be--he would have told us!”

“When did you last see the Mark,” Oikawa repeated calmly. “How do we know?”

Yaku turned a furious red, hackles raising like a furious cat, even as he turned to his King. “Kenma, say something!”

The King of Diamonds was frowning, a barely there tilt of his lips and a general air that radiated discomfort.

Everyone was watching him.

There was a small puff of air, barely enough to be called a sigh. Kenma met their eyes.

“Kuroo is loyal to Cards,” he said quietly.

Oikawa didn’t back down. “When. Have. You. Seen.  _ The Mark _ ?”

“I believe what Kenma is trying to say,” Akaashi stepped in, “is that we would have known if the Fates declared him Unworthy. Even if we haven’t checked the Mark recently, we’d have noticed the signs.”

“Really?” Oikawa looked at Suga. “And last time, did you notice the signs  _ then _ ? Or did it take a Civil War for you to realize?”

Suga regarded him evenly. “This isn’t Hearts’ Civil War.”

“No,” Oikawa agreed. “It won’t be.” 

He looked down the table. “Barely over a decade ago, Hearts’ Queen and Ace were able to hide that they lost their Marks for years. They abandoned villages, they massacred hundreds of their dissenters, they even set fire to their own capital.” Oikawa sat, back straight and with a stare that  _ dared  _ them to look away. “And a large part of how they were able is that no one was asking questions until it was already too late.”

Oikawa sighed. “Of course, I’m not saying it’s what I want. I’m not saying it’s happened to Kuroo. But, what we need to do remains the same.” He glanced down at the heart stained red on his hand. “This isn’t something we  _ should  _ consider, it’s something we  _ have to.  _ It’s not a matter of trust, it’s not a matter of friendship or loyalty. It’s duty. We have to plan for every outcome, even the worst.”

There was silence once again, broken as Iwaizumi laid a hand on his King’s shoulder.

“He’s right,” Iwaizumi said. “We have to consider it.”

Next to them, Mad Dog grunted in agreement.

Yaku glanced at Kenma before nodding. “.....okay, I’ll look into what Kuroo’s been up to before all of this. See what I can dig up.” He narrowed his eyes at Oikawa. “ _ Not  _ that I expect I’ll find anything.”

Oikawa smiled, the seriousness slid off of him like water down a window. “Of course not!”

“Speaking of the people, what kind of announcement are we going to make,” Akaashi questioned. “The palace guard that summoned us mentioned there’s already been rumors. We may be able to hide the broken window; but, that’s not going to work nearly as well when Kuroo doesn’t show up to any of the festival events. People will talk, even more if the rumor is murder between Suits. There would be riots.”

“So, we give them some truth,” Konoha suggested. “We can’t tell them the entire truth, so we tell them Kuroo had urgent business come up as Ace of Diamonds.”

“That’ll work  _ for a time _ .” Yaku sighed. “The longer this takes, the more people are going to get suspicious when they don’t see Kuroo. We need to find them quick.”

Iwaizumi frowned. “How  _ are  _ we going to find them? Do we even have any leads? Someone’s gotta know something.”

“Hinata could’ve found out,” Kageyama muttered, almost to himself.

“Well….maybe not just Hinata.” Suga turned to Tsukishima. “We need to call in the other spies.”

There was a beat.

_ “YOU HAVE OTHER SPIES?!” _ Lev and Bokuto yelled in unison.

Tsukishima and Suga both ignored them.

“Fine,” Tsukishima waved a hand. “It’ll still take time for them to get here. I’ll need to recall Noya from his current mission.”

Suga hummed. “Think we should tell Yachi, too?”

“Not yet.” Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “ _ Someone  _ still needs to stay and run the kingdom.”

Suga smiled. “Then, it’s settled?”

Tsukishima nodded, turning back to the rest of the group. “I’ll take up the investigation to find Kuroo and Hinata. And we  _ will  _ find them. But, until then….”

In the Diamonds’ meeting room, the Suits of Cards all sat along the table, each with their own thoughts. But, on one conclusion, there was perfect agreement.

“This doesn’t leave the Suits,” Tsukishima finished. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-----

“Remember,” Hinata whispered as they got closer to the merchant town, “the most important thing is not being noticed and definitely not being recognized. Honestly, depending on how they feel about strangers, who knows what we’ll even get this time around. We have to be  _ really  _ subtle.”

“Hinata, Cards could be under attack right now,” Kuroo said bluntly, still leaning heavily on the crutch they’d managed to fashion. “I don’t know if we have time for subtlety.”

Hinata grimaced. “Yeah….well, we don’t have time to get murdered either. Which is  _ definitely  _ what’s going to happen if they notice one of Cards’ Aces, injured and walking around the docks.”

Kuroo still looked dissatisfied.

“We can’t tell our Suits anything if we’re dead,” Hinata reminded him.

Kuroo nodded once sharply. “I know.”

“Great,” Hinata tried for a winning smile. “Also, I’m going to need you not to talk.”

Kuroo’s head whipped around. “What?  _ Why? _ ”

“Do you even know what a Futakuchi accent sounds like,” Hinata asked.

Kuroo stared back wordlessly. __

Hinata nodded like he’d answered anyway. “So, like I said, no talking for you. We’re already new faces to the locals-- _ hopefully,  _ they’re used to that in a dock town; but, if we show up talking like we’re from Cards, we’re screwed.”

Kuroo was frowning. “If we can’t even talk, then how are we going to find out anything?”

“ _ We’re _ not, I am.” Hinata patted his back, careful to avoid the many, many bruises. “Just sit back and try to look intimidating when I need you to…..or if that doesn’t work, just be really pathetic and maybe someone will give us money.”

Kuroo responded by giving him the darkest glare he’d managed all morning.

Hinata was almost comforted by the familiarity. Ugh, this would be so much easier if he had Tsuki. 

But, with that, they could at least continue their slightly shuffling and definitely a bit pathetic walk into town until Hinata spied the exact place he needed most.

A tavern!  _ Perfect. _

He mentally sighed; that really never sounded good, did it?

“There,” Hinata said, already lengthening his vowels and roughening his consonants to what he hoped was a close approximation to the local dialect.

Kuroo clearly eyed Hinata’s choice of establishment in disbelief, but luckily stayed quiet as Hinata steered them to the door.

The hum of bar conversation suddenly went dead quiet as several pairs of eyes immediately found them.

Hinata smiled and offered a short, aborted wave. 

Kuroo glared, the gesture only partly as effective with the way half of his face was dark purple.

Deciding to ignore it, Hinata limped his way to the bar where the bartender took one long look at him and slid two mugs across the bar.

“Um, thanks,” Hinata said sheepishly. “But, we kind of don’t have any money.”

The bartender snorted. “Kid, it’s on the house. By the looks of you and your friend, you need it.”

He winced. “We were mugged.”

“Aye,” the bartender nodded. “I know  _ exactly  _ what type of ‘mugging’ that is. Didn’t bring enough for the bribe, did ya?”

Hinata blinked, hiding his surprise with a drink from the mug. “They raised the price.”

Further down the bar, a man’s face twisted into a scowl, spitting to the side. “Fuckin’ Navy bastards! As if their taxes don’t bleed us dry enough.”

There was a  _ whack  _ and a rattle as a woman beside him smacked the back of his head hard enough to jar the bar. “Shut that giant hole you call a mouth, Ueda! Before the wrong ear hears it and ya get the entire place shut down!’”

Ueda grumbled under his breath before turning a surly scowl back up at Hinata and Kuroo. “Why ain’t your friend saying anything? Think he’s too good for us?”

“Broken jaw,” Hinata lied, shaking his head sadly. 

Kuroo clearly fought back an eye roll but nodded.

“Rotten luck that,” the woman said, eying the bruises with a wince. “Our last good healer just got hired up by a merchant ship, won’t be back for a month. All we got left is the one further uptown and he’ll near charge ya the other leg to even see ya.”

Hinata rubbed the back of his neck with his good arm. “We were kind of looking for something quick….and cheap, I guess. Any Mages in town?”

The bartender threw back his head and laughed. “Town can hardly afford a live in doctor and you wonder if we’ve got a  _ Mage _ ?” He shook his head. “Kid, closest I’ve seen to a good piece of magic lately is how quick my extra coins always seem to disappear when the Yamada kid’s around.”

Ueda snorted before it turned suspicious. “What’s the hurry?”

“Cousin’s having a baby,” Hinata answered easily. “We were on our way North to see her when….well, we ran into company first.”

“What ship,” he demanded only for the woman to sigh loudly.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Ueda,” she groaned. “Enough about that Fates begotten ship!”

Ueda glared, pointing. “Those two show up the same day it docks and you can’t say that’s a bit suspicious, Tamura!”

“Yeah,” Tamura drawled, jerking her head at their cuts and ill fit clothes, “they look like real nobility.”

“Said they got robbed, maybe they took their fancy clothes, too,” Ueda argued.

“Navy don’t rob their own,” the bartender muttered. 

Ueda huffed. “Maybe they’re not their own, didn’t see no flags on it.”

Tamura just rolled her eyes.

“Um,” Hinata took his chance, “what ship?”

“As if you don’t know,” Ueda muttered; but, it was half hearted at best.

“It’s  _ actually _ nothing,” Tamura answered dismissively, “only reason it’s even gossip is because this fool won’t shut up about it. Rich ship showed up this morning, docked for barely an hour before it left. That’s it.” She looked back at Ueda. “In other words, even if they were on it, they would’ve been  _ left behind _ , Ueda, so ya can leave conspiracy theories until I’ve at least had another few beers.” __

“What’s weird about a rich ship,” Hinata asked.

Tamura snorted. “Exactly.”

“Nothing,” Ueda scowled at her, “except no one in town could recognize a single one of the crew.  _ Not any of them.  _ We may not be a major port; but, we’re not that small either. Have an entire crew no one could claim to know, that’s past strange.”

Hinata and Kuroo exchanged a look.

“You don’t know anything else about it,” Hinata asked.

Tamura sighed. “Looks like Ueda’s infected another one.”

The bartender just smiled.

“Not  _ yet _ ,” Ueda admitted begrudgingly, “but wait, then we’ll all see who’s being paranoid.”

“Ueda thinks it’s a rich ol’ merchant ship hoping to get a King’s charter and run the rest of us out of business,” Tamura said.

Ueda slammed his fist on the bar. “As if our fat old bastard of a King wouldn’t give it to them!”

“UEDA!” The bartender yelled, looking anxiously at the doors.

Ueda paled immediately, going silent.

A long moment of silence passed along the bar before conversation gingerly started back up.

“So,” Hinata lowered his voice, “the Navy guards are they--”

“Hush,” Tamara ordered, mouth pinched, “we don’t talk about the Navy here. Ya want to talk about our crown, ya save it for your own roof where it’s just ya own neck at risk.”

Hinata frowned and nodded, sipping at his beer instead.

Tamara eyed him. “Where’d ya say you two were from, anyway? Ain’t no island that shouldn’t know not to bad mouth the Navy?”

Hinata tried to smile. “We’re from down South.”

“Yeah?” The bartender leaned forward. “Got a sister down there. What island?”

Hinata kept his smile with the ease of practice as he tried frantically to remember any of the islands that Ukai had taught him over a decade ago. He glanced hard at Kuroo .

“Oh,” Hinata started, trying not to let the hesitation show, “It’s a small town, down by….”

Kuroo lost the footing on his crutch and stumbled forward, whacking his side against the bar hard enough to draw the attention of the entire bar.

Kuroo let out a pained hiss and Hinata could have hugged him.

“Ouch,” Tamara commiserated, “two of ya need a healer  _ bad. _ ” She paused for another second. “Guess ya could try Old Man Moto.”

Ueda snorted. “Calling  _ him _ a healer is an insult to the trade.”

“He’s cheap,” Tamara shrugged before glancing at Hinata. “Might have to pay him in favors, though. Moto’s a nasty old bastard, best not to give him too much to work with before ya already got a deal with him.”

“Where is he,” Hinata asked, helping Kuroo back up to steady on the crutch.

Ueda jerked his finger to the left. “Down the road and take a right passed the docks. You’ll know you’re in the right place when it looks filthy enough to sink in your bones”

“Sounds great,” Hinata said cheerfully, already grabbing Kuroo’s good side and dragging him to the door. “Thanks for the drinks.”

“Sure, kid,” The bartender said. “Careful not to run into any more trouble.”

Hinata wished his life was that easy.

He tossed out a final leave before all but shoving both him and Kuroo out the door.

“Thanks for the save,” he whispered under his breath.

Kuroo nodded, waiting until they were far enough away before risking a response. “The ship?”

“Has to be,” Hinata agreed. “What are the odds a different ship apparently made it through the Iron Wall the same morning as a mystery ship docks here and leaves within an hour?”

“Which means it’s a dead end,” Kuroo said. “How do we find out about a ship that no one knows?”

Hinata just frowned. “ _ Someone  _ has to know about it. Someone had to send it.”

Kuroo frowned, tilting his head in acknowledgement and letting the conversation lull.

As they walked further from the main market, the town took on a grimier edge, a scent of rotting fish twining through the air as the streets narrowed and darkened into alleys.

It was admittedly not the first place Hinata would associate with the word “healing”...or really, even in the top two thousand words.

“You know, Hinata,” Kuroo began nonchalantly, “a few months ago, I was showing a trainee how to string a bow when he lost his grip, recoiled back hard enough to knock out a tooth. Lev had it healed in minutes. You know what that tells me?”

Hinata gave him a sheepish grin. “That Lev’s getting better at healing magic?”

“He is, actually,” Kuroo agreed fondly. “But, no, what it tells me is I’m never taking a trip with you again.” A rat scurried by and hissed at them. “Ever, ever again.”

Hinata laughed weakly. “I’ve seen worse.”

“That’s terrifying,” Kuroo said before grimacing, leaning heavily on his crutch.

Hinata stopped in his steps. “Need a break?”

“Just for a minute,” Kuroo said, leaning to his weight against the wall and taking a few heavy breaths.

“I really am sorry about the knee,” Hinata said.

“You did what you had to do,” Kuroo said with a half shrug. “I’m just sorry it didn’t work.”

Hinata paused. “Do you remember if--”

“Now, what have we got here?”

Both looked up to find two men standing at the head of the alley and in the dark teal of the Futakuchi Royal Navy.

“You tourists?” The first man tapped his chin, turning so his sword clearly shone at the side of his hip. “Don’t suppose I’ve seen you around here before and I  _ definitely  _ would have noticed a face as messed up as yours. What about you, Nomura?”

The other guard--Nomura, apparently--shook his head. “Nope, Chiba, can’t say I’ve ever seen ‘em.”

“Well, can you imagine that.” Chiba leaned back, hands on his hips. “If you’re new to our lovely ports, allow me to be the first to inform you about our standing visitors tax.”

“We already paid it,” Hinata said, keeping his eyes low and to the ground instead of a challenge.

“See, I thought you might given the looks of you.” Chiba smiled pleasantly. “Sullied business these taxes and few the honorable men that serve to, let’s say, collect them to their fullest and truest extent. But,  _ then,  _ what do I see but two fine men like yourselves walking out of our local taverns.” His grin was shark like. “So, obviously, you still have some spare coin to spend in the honor of our great town.”

“We don’t have any more money,” Hinata pleaded. “I promise. We only stopped by the tavern to ask around for a healer.”

“Your friend.” Nomura leaned forward. “Saw you chatting earlier; but, now, he’s got nothing. Why doesn’t  _ he  _ talk?”

“Do you think he’s mute,” Chiba asked, voice all fake concern.

Nomura snickered. “Maybe he forgot how.” 

“Well,” Chiba said, leaning forward to smirk at Kuroo.  _ “Speak _ .”

Kuroo glared.

“Piss off,” he said through gritted teeth.

_ Fuck,  _ Hinata thought.

Chiba pushed forward, grabbing at Kuroo’s collar and ignoring Kuroo’s hiss as it jarred his arm and ribs. “What did you say to me?”

Hinata tried to step between them. “He didn’t mean it! He’s just in pain from his injuries; he doesn’t know what he’s saying!”

“Well, maybe he should have thought of that before he managed to hurt himself,” Nomura drawled.

Chiba laughed, hands still wrapped in Kuroo’s collar. “Guess we better teach him again about minding his betters.”

In retrospect, Hinata probably couldn’t have stopped what happened next if he tried.

Chiba pulled forward on the collar, fist already raised and aimed at Kuroo’s broken nose.

There was a flash of bright red in Kuroo’s eyes, vivid and  _ far, far  _ too recognizable as an Ace’s power even from further up the alley….

The crutch in 

Kuroo’s hand moved lightning fast, slamming once into the guard’s stomach until he recoiled back before striking him hard in the neck.

Chiba fell to his knees, hands around his throat and gagging.

Nomura, meanwhile, had gone white, sword out in shaking hands as he stared at Kuroo.

“I...I know what that was,” he stuttered out. “That was an Ace’s power! I’ve heard stories about those! You’re….,” impossibly the man went even more pale, “Fates, you’re an Ac--”

That was all he got before Hinata’s knife hit him in the chest.

Hinata turned, not even giving it another second before he did the same to Chiba.

And, then, he crossed his arms and gave a decided  _ look  _ to Kuroo. “What happened to not getting recognized?”

“It was reflex,” Kuroo muttered. “Asshole had a weak side defense.” 

“We haven’t even been in town an hour!”

Kuroo at least had the grace to look a little bit contrite. “I’m not going to miss them.”

Hinata rolled his eyes, walking over to retrieve his other knife from Nomura. “Who will? But what exactly are we going to do with the bodies?”

“What indeed?” There was the slow sound of clapping coming from the other end of the alley.

Kuroo and Hinata both jerked up just, only to see a man with swept brown hair. He was flanked by what had to be one of the largest men Hinata had ever seen in his life, staring down at them from under a shock of white cropped hair.

The first man smirked. “Thank you for the show….. _ Ace of Diamonds. _ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, thank you so, so much, everyone, for all the support in the last chapter! You are awesome, awesome people, guys!
> 
> Next chapter should be out in two weeks, so, July 11-12. Stay safe and have a great end of June, everyone!


	3. Chapter 3

_ 3 Weeks Prior to Diamonds Winter Festival _

_ “Everything’s going to be fine. I promise!” _

_ “I don’t know….,” Kageyama frowned, continuing to let Hinata drag him forward despite his words. “Hinata….I think I changed my mind about this.” _

_ Hinata smiled up at him, squeezing his hand. “That’s alright, too.” _

_ Kageyama took a deep breath, closing his eyes. “You really think it’ll be fine if I’m there?” _

_ “I think you’ll love it,” Hinata said, the words washing forward with all the warmth of the setting sun. “I think they’ll love seeing you, too.” _

_ Kageyama made a face. “I’m the King, Hinata. Aren’t people….don’t they normally not like to hang out and drink beers around royalty?” _

_ Hinata laughed loudly. “Are you kidding? Whenever Suga makes rounds around the town, he’s practically swarmed!” _

_ “Yeah, but that’s  _ Suga _ ,” Kageyama admitted slowly. “I’m just me.” _

_ “Yeah, you’re  _ you, _ ” Hinata said, leaning up on his toes to brush the hair out of his eyes and wrap a hand around his neck. He pulled him forward, kissing him softly until Kageyama could feel his heartbeat finally start to calm. Hinata pulled back. “You’re you and you’re their King, a  _ good  _ King. They already love you. Just like me.” _

_ Kageyama breathed out, extending his hand and letting Hinata pull him out to the breadth of the city. _

_ “Well, alright, maybe not  _ just  _ like me,” Hinata added. “It better not be just like me, at least.” _

_ Kageyama rolled his eyes. “You’re ridiculous.” _

_ “But, I’m your ridiculous,” Hinata teased. “You’re stuck with me!” _

_ “Good,” Kageyama mumbled despite himself. _

_ Hinata’s smile went soft, the falling sun soaking through his hair and lighting it golden red. _

_ “Dummy,” Kageyama quickly added, feeling his heart beat faster for an entirely different reason. _

_ Hinata cackled. “Hurry up, the bands are starting to play soon and I don’t want to miss it.” _

_ Hinata continued to lead him, further from the palace markets that Kageyama was slowly becoming familiar with, further even than the artisan stretch that Suga had just started to introduce him to, and down to where the city had just started to light up in local night life though not quite anywhere close to the wilder, seedier places down by the river. _

_ “By the way,” Hinata whispered to him, steering him to one of the nicer taverns, “I might have to step out for just a few minutes for a meeting. Nothing much, just a super quick Ace of Spades meeting where I can’t be seen as Hinata the servant.” _

_ Kageyama froze. “You said this trip was just about seeing people and listening in on the local gossip!” _

_ “And it is….mostly,” Hinata reassured. “Just a super, super quick meeting I really can’t miss. Look, that looks like Ms. Yua! You love Ms. Yua, remember? She’s the one with the grandson that drooled on you when you tried to hold him! See! You’ll be fine!” _

_ “Hinata,” Kageyama hissed. _

_ Hinata drooped. “Please, Tobio? I wouldn’t have scheduled it for tonight if I knew that you wanted to come along. It really will only take a few minutes.” _

_ Kageyama looked from Hinata’s big pleading eyes to the well-lit tavern door that  _ seemed  _ nice and welcoming for now; but, Kageyama knew from experience that a lot of things seemed simple now but were really just waiting for the chance and then-- _

_ He took a deep breath. _

_ “You’re right,” he said, both to Hinata and to himself, “I’ll be fine.” _

_ Hinata smiled up at him--the really bright, beaming one that he only gave to Kageyama and only when he did something that Hinata really, really liked. _

_ Kageyama felt something warm building up in the pit of his stomach. “Quit looking at me like that!” _

_ “No,” Hinata said before pulling him forward and steering both of them into the open room of the tavern. _

_ The noise of conversation stopped. The tuning sounds of instruments quit. Kageyama felt dozens of eyes land on him and it itched against his skin. _

_ Maybe this was a bad idea. _

_ Hinata smiled at one of the workers. “Hey, Niko, can we get a table? For two, please.” _

_ “Hinata? Um, two?” The server stared past Hinata, looking at Kageyama with large, bewildered eyes. _

_ Kageyama tried to relax his shoulders, which he had a feeling were hunching too close to his ears. He nodded at her. _

_ And slowly but decidedly, Niko began to smile. _

_ The conversation in the tavern started back up, a bit slower and definitely with a few people pointing to the newest entrants but that was okay. The musicians started tuning their instruments again. _

_ “Of course, Hinata, Your Highness,” Niko ducked her head in a quick bow. “Right this way, we have a few seats closer to the band. And I take it you’ve never been to Spades’ Reserve, Your Highness? You’re in luck! Best place in the whole of Cards if you’ll take my word for it! Probably in Nohebi and Hyakuzawa, too!” _

_ Kageyama didn’t really know what to do with the sudden influx of words; but, he tied to nod along and the right places, letting Hinata answer for him in an easy, flow of conversation until they were finally led to a table squeezed in tightly along the others, right before a slight stage. _

_ “Um, will this be alright,” Niko asked. “I know it’s a bit crowded. Sorry, we can try to move people if you’d like….” _

_ “This is fine,” Kageyama said, pulling up a smile that was probably horrible and awkward but at least made the server breathe out in relief. _

_ “I’ll get you some drinks to start off with,” she said before disappearing off into the crowd. _

_ No sooner than she was gone did Kageyama feel a wrinkled old hand reach out and gently tap his shoulder. _

_ He looked back to find the lined face of a smiling Ms. Yua. _

_ “Nice to see you out and about, My King,” she greeted before winking behind him. “And you, too, of course, Hinata. Nice to see the palace isn’t locking you up and working you to the bone, dear boy.” _

_ Hinata sighed, overly dramatic, leaning against Kageyama’s shoulder--Kageyama heard at least one person gasp but he ignored them.  _

_ “It’s a thankless job, Ms. Yua,” Hinata gestured to his hands palm up. “Look, I’m practically more callus than human!” _

_ Ms. Yua threw back her head and laughed. “Yes, I can see you’re simply hating it! That’s why you seem to be taking your work out with you!” _

_ “Well,” Hinata grinned, “you know  _ some  _ parts are definitely worth it.” _

_ Ms. Yua reached out and pinched his face. “Cheeky, cheeky little thing, you are.” _

_ Kageyama cleared his throat. “How’s….how’s your grandson?” _

_ Ms. Yua turned to him in surprise before looking absolutely delighted. “Well, how kind of you for remembering! Oh, little Jun’s doing just fine! He just started teething,you know? My son’s already got the bite marks to prove it!” _

_ “Your drinks, Your Highness,” Niko said, placing two mugs on their table. _

_ “Thanks.” Hinata slid two coins forward. _

_ She shook her head, grinning. “Are you kidding? My boss would kill me. On the house.” _

_ “We can pay,” Kageyama insisted. _

_ Niko just laughed. “Your Highness, no offense, but getting to say we served Spades’ mysterious King is worth all the business we make in a  _ week _ , let alone two meals and some beer.” _

_ Kageyama blushed slightly but decided not to argue it. _

_ Behind him, the band started to play, the rest of the patrons starting to clap along to the beat, sometimes yelling the lyrics along with them. Kageyama panicked, looking over to Hinata to already find him leaning close. _

_ “Here, I’ll teach it to you,” he said and then stayed right where he was, whispering the words against his ear as the rest of the band sang along. _

_ And Kageyama could breathe. _

_ The conversation in the bar eased around him, the band playing through from old drinking songs to mellow ones meant for talk and laughter. As the night grew darker and a few people eased a bit further into their cups, Kageyama found himself pulled more and more in by table after table, each group of friends more than happy to share a bit of their time telling stories to Spades’ King. And slowly, he tried to tell stories of his own, Hinata at his side to cheerfully interject or bicker on some minor point until Kageyama noticed the rest relaxing alongside him. _

_ It was an hour, maybe two, when Hinata leaned in and kissed his cheek. “I’ll be back soon. Don’t worry, they love you.” _

_ Louder and to the rest of the group, he laughed. “Need to find the latrine. Keep our King entertained for me, will ya?” _

_ There was a round of echoing laughter and slowly Kageyama breathed out, before another man raised up his mug. “Oi, someone tell him about that time with the sailboat and the merchant from Clubs!” _

_ Kageyama smiled and carefully let himself believe that Hinata just may have been right. _

_ \----- _

_ Hinata dropped down from an alley a few streets away. He lowered his voice, making it sound flat and almost cold. “I heard you wanted to meet with me?” _

_ Aoi jumped, gripping a knife tight in his fist as he tried to make out Hinata’s form in the darkness. “A-Ace of Spades?” _

_ Hinata stepped forward, the mask covering his face as he let the moon shine off the black of his uniform. _

_ Aoi swallowed. “How do I know it’s really you?” _

_ With careful movements, Hinata reached for a hidden slit, right by his shoulder and barely visible in the folds of the black fabric.  _

_ He moved it down to show the black symbol of Spades, ‘A’ shining bright gold in the center. “What do you have? And why didn’t you tell our Jack?” _

_ “I couldn’t!” Aoi clutched the knife protectively closer to his own chest, taking shaking steps nearer as his eyes watched the shadows. “I never wanted to be part of this! Please, believe me! I’ve smuggled a few things past the border, yeah; but, they were  _ small  _ things….barely worth the risk of skipping the import tax. Other than that, I’m a loyal Spades’ citizen, I swear! I didn’t know what they were planning when I….” _

_ He took a stuttering breath, trying to meet Hinata’s eyes as close as he could through the hooded mask. “They’ll kill me if they find out I told anyone, do you understand? They’ll  _ kill  _ me.” _

_ “We can keep you safe,” Hinata promised. “You can trust me. We’ve done it before. Tsukishima can set you up a completely new identity….if the risk is worth it.” _

_ Aoi was already shaking his head. “He won’t. The Jack of Spades won’t lift a finger to help me, not with what I know.” _

_ Hinata tilted his head. “What do you know?” _

_ “A few months ago, a man approached me about using one of my boats to smuggle something into Cards.” Aoi sighed. “Didn’t tell me what it was, didn’t tell me where it was from. Normally, I wouldn’t take a job like that; but, the pay he was offering me…..Fates, it was more than I’d make in a year, more than I’d make in  _ two  _ years.” _

_ “Who was he,” Hinata asked, already filing away the details. _

_ “Didn’t tell me a name,” Aoi said. “Shaved head, grey beard, roughly my age, few scars….looked like they were sword marks; but, I’ve never been good at telling those military types outside of the dock guards.” Aoi rubbed his neck. “Only thing he said to me was he was part of a group called the Hawks. Told him I’d never heard of them, he said I would.” _

_ “The Hawks,” Hinata frowned, “what else did he say about them?” _

_ “Nothing! Real tight lipped about it, even when I bought him a beer! That was part of what was weird about it! Most guys you meet on this side at least like to brag a  _ little  _ if they got a haul worth all that!” Aoi chewed on the bottom of his lip. “So, anyway, I got a bit curious about what this cargo was. Met with him one last time after everything was done, just to get the boat’s ownership papers back. And….well, he was a bit distracted. Apparently actually getting the ‘haul’ was enough to keep him preoccupied and that made me even more curious. So, on my way out, I might’ve grabbed something small--just a paper that had fallen through the cracks in the deck, nothing they’d miss and then when I read it….” _

_ Aoi closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I think they’re planning something against Cards. Some kind of attack. But, that’s not even the worst part. The worst part is I found out what the cargo was.” _

_ “What was it,” Hinata pressed. _

_ Aoi slid a paper out of his vest, handing it over to Hinata. _

_ “Not a what, a  _ him-- _ a Mage that’s working for them,” Aoi said grimly. “And  _ that’s  _ why I can’t tell the Jack.” _

_ Hinata looked down and a single name stared back at him. _

_ Tsukishima Akiteru _

_ \----- _

_ Kageyama felt more than saw Hinata slide back next to him, preoccupied with listening to one of the older man’s stories, giant hands sweeping across the room in loud gestures. _

_ He probably wouldn’t have noticed anything for at least another few minutes if Hinata didn’t lean his head against his shoulder, sliding arms around his waist and pulling him closer in a hug that was just a hair too tight to be casual. _

_ Kageyama looked down to find Hinata not meeting his eyes, brows pinched as his gaze was focused down on the floorboards. _

_ Kageyama frowned, leaning closer. “Everything alright?” _

_ Hinata glanced up, eyes meeting his and searching for a long, unsteady moment--long enough that Kageyama swallowed and almost asked again before…. _

_ Hinata smiled at him, warm and somehow comforted even though Kageyama hadn’t even said anything yet. _

_ Hinata nodded.  _

_ “Everything’s going to be fine. I promise!” _

  
  
  
  
  


\-------

There was a knock on Kageyama’s guest chamber and Kageyama knew who it was on instinct. The sound was far,  _ far  _ too familiar to forget, traced with late nights as a sad, angry boy with soothing hands rubbing his back as he cried and a comforting voice murmuring kind words.

“Kageyama,” the voice asked.

Kageyama sat down his book. “You can come in, Suga.”

The Queen of Spades opened the door, eyes soft and smile careful. Suga sat down on the chair across from him. “How are you doing?”

Kageyama tensed, not fighting too hard to keep the snap out of his voice. “I’m  _ fine _ !”

A single look from Suga had him feeling regret.

His shoulders slumped, breathing in deeply before trying again.

“I’m fine,” he lied more sincerely. “I’m fine, Suga, everything’s going to be fine.”

_ He promised _ .

Kageyama quickly shook the thought away.

Suga sighed. “Kageyama, even in our best case scenario, Kuroo and Hinata are both injured and captured by a clearly hostile party. And that’s the  _ best case _ , the more likely….” He trailed off, resting his face in his hands.

“Hinata’s alive, Suga,” Kageyama said and this, at least, he believed. “Tsukishima’s the smartest person I know, the smartest person  _ either _ of us know, and he knows more about Hinata’s abilities than anyone. If he says that they’re alive, then they are.”

“I don’t believe Tsukishima is currently working entirely from rationality instead of emotion,” Suga said evenly.

Kageyama snorted, almost smiling despite the seriousness of the situation. “Suga, it’s  _ Tsukishima  _ when have we  _ ever  _ had to worry about  _ him  _ being too emotional.” 

“Yes,” Suga replied, “from what I’ve been hearing, that’s the conclusion of the rest of the Suits as well.” He sighed. “I know what they think; but, the stakes are different now.”

“Last summer,” Kageyama said, “our entire kingdom was almost destroyed and the most emotion I saw him display was annoyance or that smug condescension he always does. It doesn’t get much higher stakes than that.”

“That’s  _ different _ ,” Suga insisted.

“Suga….,” Kageyama frowned, “why do you keep pushing for this?”

Suga didn’t answer immediately, staring down at his hands before carefully raising one to lay over his vest, right above where his Mark laid. “Because I want us all to be prepared for the worst.”

Kageyama felt a chill of cold run up his spine--no, more than cold, a terror, the same type that he’d been fighting back since he’d been woken up at dawn and summoned to Diamonds’ throne room and the sight of blood.

He pushed it back.

“There’s no need to prepare for the worst,” Kageyama said. “Hinata’s alive and until we find him….until he’s  _ back,  _ I’ll be here--doing what he’d want me to be doing.”

Suga was still frowning.

Kageyama leaned down next to him, grimacing as he struggled to find the words. “Suga, this doesn’t have to be like the other times. This doesn’t…..Look, I know you’ve lived through more Suits than any of us; but, Hinata’s not…..Hinata’s not  _ them,  _ okay? He’s not the other Aces.” Kageyama swallowed, trying to find the fire he felt burning in his chest and give it conviction. “Hinata’s  _ alive _ .”

Suga breathed out, looking up at him with the same kind eyes he always did.

This time, they felt like a lie.

“Maybe you’re right,” Suga said and the words were so soft Kageyama could almost think that Suga believed them. “Maybe I am being too negative. Tsukishima  _ is  _ the one who knows Hinata the best, m-maybe…..” 

Suga’s stumbled with the words for another second before, finally, he offered up a smile. “If Tsukishima says they’re okay, then I’m sure Hinata and Kuroo will be fine.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Hinata and Kuroo were not fine.

“Well, Ace of Diamonds” the man continued to smirk, “aren’t you going to tell us what an Ace like you is doing all the way out here on our islands?” He leaned forward, eying Hinata. “Not to mention introduce your little friend over there that apparently doesn’t mind killing downed men, not to mention two members of our fine Navy.”

Hinata and Kuroo exchanged a loaded look.

Kuroo’s eyes turned red and he charged forward on his good leg, swinging out his crutch like a cudgel and aimed straight at the still smirking man’s head.

Hinata saw the glint of the sword from the side, fast and almost hidden as it cut through Kuroo’s path. He didn’t pause to think, reaching in his clothes for a knife.

It is an unfortunate consequence of nature that even fully trained Aces can make mistakes every now and then, especially with unfamiliar clothes and various weapons hidden more haphazardly than Hinata was used to compared to his normal uniform.

The upshot was this: what Hinata grabbed was not in fact a knife.

He adapted anyway.

The book slammed into Kuroo’s face, knocking him away a second before the sword hit his neck.

_ “Ow! _ ” Kuroo shouted. “Hinata! Seriously?!”

The white haired giant’s sword impaled the book, sticking thickly in the leather spine to the man’s utter bafflement.

“My book,” Hinata whispered, utterly crestfallen.

The smirking man threw back his head and laughed. “Stop! Stop! Aone, stop!” The smirk faded off into a grin. “Gentlemen, I think we’ve come to some kind of misunderstanding.” He pointed to himself. “I’m Kenji, this is Aone and, unless I’m terribly mistaken about your opinions on the Royal Navy, then I’m fairly positive we’re on the same side.”

“What,” Kuroo demanded flatly, still rubbing at his face where a dull red mark looked to be close to joining the other bruises.

The white haired giant apparently named Aone finally got the book unstuck from his sword and gently handed it off to Kuroo.

Kenji sighed, glancing over at the bodies. “We’d better talk about this back on the ship. A patrol will probably be around sooner rather than later and I’d prefer to not be by  _ them  _ when they do.”

“Ship?” Hinata finally took in the state of their clothes, leather worn for sea-fare but too many weapons to be a merchant or even a sailor. His eyes widened. “You’re pirates!”

“Only the best!” Kenji winked before his face went serious. “And I wasn’t kidding, we need to  _ leave  _ now!”

“Why should we trust you,” Kuroo asked.

Kenji snorted. “I’ve got a better question. Because as far as I understand it, you’re a foreign sovereign, injured and sneaking around in a hostile country that’ll more than likely execute you on sight if they figure out who you are. And that’s not even mentioning that your friend just killed two guards in broad daylight and I can  _ promise  _ you Futakuchi’s court system is a few notches shy of ‘fair’ and ‘just’ even on a good day.”

“So,” Kenji turned, throwing his arms out in a careless shrug as he began to walk away, “the real question isn’t why  _ should  _ you trust us, it’s do you have any other choice?”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Tsukishima was irritated.

Sadly, it was not a particularly new feeling--especially when it was in any way associated with Hinata as his job far too often was. It was somehow even more aggravating not to have the man himself here to complain about it to his face.

He stood on the small ledge, frightfully close to the falls, examining any clues he might have missed.

“Resources,” he stated. “We need to look into resources. Only a few groups would have the kind of funds to transport two full grown men in that brief of a time frame, not to mention holding them for any length of time.” He leaned down, tapping at the edge of the ledge. “ _ And  _ with one of them well known like the Ace of Diamonds.”

Behind him, closer to the more reasonable safety of the palace, Konoha nodded, quietly making a note but not offering any response.

Tsukishima grit his teeth. “I’d say they’d have to have connections within the palace itself, probably the staff, but the Festivals are always a huge security risk. They could have easily snuck in with the temporary staff and no one would have noticed.”

Konoha hummed in thought, making another note.

“The real question is why Eshima didn’t see anyone else,” Tsukishima said. “I suppose it could have been shock or maybe she didn’t notice; but, given the time frame, that probably means multiple people. At least three--one upstairs with the supposed fight and two down here to secure them once they fell.”

Konoha nodded before he looked up to notice Tsukishima wasn’t continuing, almost like he was waiting for something.

“Makes sense,” the other Jack offered.

Tsukishima sighed. “Either that or we’re still missing something, some kind of clue or….or something.” His mouth thinned to a straight line. “That’s just theory for now, of course. As much as I hate to say it, our real question for now can’t be ‘how’, it’s what they’re doing with them now. If they’re still in the city or if they risked moving them further? What routes they used? If anyone outside the palace saw anything helpful? Which brings us right back to the question of resources.”

Konoha made another note and Tsukishima refrained from grabbing the quill and throwing it off the ledge.

_ “Well,” _ he demanded.

Konoha frowned in confusion. “Well what?”

“What do you think?” Tsukishima made a frustrated gesture. “Your opinions? Ideas? You’re a Jack, aren’t you? What do you  _ think _ ?”

Konoha looked offended for a half a second and Tsukishima readied himself for the argument before Konoha tapered off his frustration with a long eye roll.

Konoha sighed. “Like I said, I think it makes sense. You seem to have a handle on it.” He tapped the bothersome quill against his irritating notes. “I’ll send a letter to Yahaba, see if he’s noticed anything off in the kingdom’s finances. Maybe make a list of groups with a suspicious amount of funds. Yaku’s already trying to gather anything the palace staff might have and I doubt his normal research experiments are going to be much help for  _ this _ . For me,” the Jack of Clubs shrugged, “I’ll take my notes and do what I normally do--check the recent histories, trade manifests, anything useful I can think of to see if I can find any connections.”

He glanced up to see Tsukishima still looking mildly annoyed even if it wasn’t quite focused on his fellow Jack.

“I’m a Jack of all trades, Tsukishima,” Konoha pointed out. “I focus on breadth, seeing how things can be adapted.  _ You’re  _ our spymaster, it’s not like you need my approval on this. Why wouldn’t I trust your ideas?”

“That’s not what I--,” Tsukishima released his breath in a huff through his nose, carefully reigning in his sharpness. When he looked up, his voice was even. “You’re right, thank you for your assistance.”

Konoha nodded, letting it go to focus on the next concern. “Yaku said the rumors are already spreading about a fight between Diamonds and Spades’ Aces, possibly deadly. I don’t know how long we’ll be able to keep this under wraps-- _ especially  _ while we’re still busy with this.”

“How did it spread so quickly?” Tsukishima frowned. “Eshima and the few personal guards were sworn to secrecy.”

Konoha offered a small smile. “You better than anyone know how people love to talk, promises or not.”

Tsukishima considered that for another second before making a dismissive gesture. “It doesn’t matter. As long as they see Spades and Diamonds still getting along at the festival that should relieve most of their fears.”

“And exactly how much  _ will  _ they see that,” Konoha questioned. “You’re busy with the investigation, Yaku’s been with the palace staff. And, right now, with how quiet Kenma’s been, I think forcing him to take center front might do more harm than good.” Konoha winced. “Not to mention, how it might hurt  _ him _ .”

Tsukishima acknowledged the point. “I’ll talk to Suga.”

“Talk to me about what,” the soothing voice echoed until it was swallowed by the noise of the falls, a second before Suga joined them on the ledge.

“We may need you to make a few more festival appearances with Lev,” Tsukishima said. “After you both finish the tracking spells, of course.”

“Akaashi, Kyotani, Lev, and I finished the tracking spell an hour ago,” Suga informed them. “That’s why I was trying to find you. We spread it’s reach to most of Hyakuzawa and half the East Sea.”

“And,” Konoha asked hopefully.

Suga looked down, shaking his head. “No sign of either of them.”

Konoha swallowed, eyes drawing to Tsukishima.

“So, they’re most likely still on the move,” Tsukishima concluded. “Excellent, more movement means more notice--it might make them easier to find.”

Suga didn’t answer, instead looking to Konoha in a silent request.

“I’m, um,” Konoha jerked his thumb back at the palace, “I’m going to go send that letter to Yahaba.”

A few moments later and the Jack and Queen of Spades were alone.

Suga stepped next to him. “How long until our spies arrive?”

“Another day at most,” Tsukishima replied before he paused. “Though if the rumors keep spreading, I might send Noya back to the castle. He’s the closest to Hinata’s body type, a few glimpses here and there of Spades’ Ace could help cut the stories off at the start.”

“Plus, he may be able to find some leads on what Hinata was working on,” Suga added.

“Since the idiot didn’t bother telling us.” Tsukishima glared. “I  _ swear,  _ Suga, I’m going to wring his neck when we find him.”

Suga didn’t acknowledge the later part. “It’s not like Hinata to keep things to himself.”

“No,” Tsukishima admitted begrudgingly, “it’s not.” He pushed down a murky feeling, lingering beneath the surface that he didn’t have the time or inclination to bother identifying. “I’ll have Shimizu and Asahi look through Diamonds’ capital, see if they can find the groups that have the resources or the inclinations to pull this off.”

“A wise choice,” Suga agreed.

Tsukishima tried again. “What do you think?”

“I think that taking a break would help you think,” Suga replied smoothly. “You haven’t even paused since you found out; you need time to process.”

“Wonderful.” Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “That’s  _ very  _ helpful, Suga, I’ll file that away right beside I should take vacations and see the beach more. In the meantime, two of our Aces are missing.”

Suga gave him a look.

“I’m not Hinata or our dear King,” Tsukishima reminded tersely. “The disapproving face doesn't work nearly as well since I’m no longer eleven.”

“More’s the pity.” Suga sighed. “Speaking of Kageyama, you have his firm support, by the way. As I believe is the case with the rest of the Suits.”

“As I should,” Tsukishima replied. “Not yours, though.”

“You  _ always  _ have my support. But, my belief?” Suga looked down and his eyes seemed weary. “I  _ want  _ to believe you. I want to believe you very,  _ very  _ badly. Likely more than I’ve ever wanted to believe in anything in my life. But, I’m afraid that’s also why I shouldn’t.”

Tsukishima jerked his head away, huffing rather than meet Suga’s gaze.

“It’s unlike you not to consider alternatives,” Suga said, words unmistakably careful.

Tsukishima spread his hands in an open gesture. “I have. This time, like  _ all  _ the times, I’ve considered the alternatives and found the most likely outcome.”

“Have you,” Suga questioned.

Yes. Tsukishima had. Because this  _ was  _ the most likely outcome. Because the alternative had Hinata dead. Because, from years of personal and often exasperating experience, Hinata dead was never the most likely outcome.

Because if Hinata was dead, he would have to tell Yachi and hear her cry. He’d have to tell Asahi and Noya and Shimizu and see how their faces would crumble. He’d have to tell Takeda and Ukai that the boy they saw as a son had fallen and no one could stop it. He’d have to tell the palace staff and the people in the capital and the workers on the docks and the barkeeps and the merchants and the thousands of people Hinata claimed as friends. Because if Hinata was dead--

“You know,” Tsukishima cut through his thoughts like a knife, “Konoha just reminded me of something quite groundbreaking. He reminded me that I was Cards’ spymaster and, thus, the most likely to sort this entire mess out and bring our Aces home. It’s nice to see that  _ some  _ apparently trust me to do my job. You know the job that I’ve been trained to do since I was  _ seven years old. _ ”

“I  _ do _ trust you, Tsukishima,” he insisted.

Tsukishima’s smile was sharp. “Then you would think you’d have as much trust in my decisions as the rest seem to.”

“The rest didn’t watch you grow up,” Suga said quietly. “ _ Both  _ of you.”

“A trying and burdensome task, no doubt. For one of us more than the other.” Tsukishima waved a hand as he turned, heading off the ledge and to the palace. “Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have more work to do and others that are, I’m sure, waiting for that work to be finished. Have fun at the festival with Lev.”

And, then, he was gone and Suga was left watching his back

The Queen of Spades sighed, feeling every year of his exceptionally long life, before he continued back to his room to summon one of his crows.

That’s the part that everyone seemed to be missing.

Tsukishima was Card’s spymaster, the smartest man that Suga had ever met and able to cut through practically any situation with the cold, almost brutal, calculations he’d come to be known for. 

But, he’d never had to work without Hinata before.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The walk back to Futakuchi’s ship was clouded with thick silence.

Hinata had spent a life surrounded by both Kageyama and Tsuki so quiet didn’t exactly bother him, even excruciatingly awkward ones.

He was much more preoccupied with turning over the book, now sitting back in his hands with the addition of one prominent sword puncture straight through the middle.

He assessed it glumly. He didn’t exactly have the time or money to replace it. 

Maybe Kageyama would believe stab wounds added character. It worked for Hinata fairly often.

“Sorry.”

Hinata looked up at the deep and surprisingly soft voice.

The giant named Aone nodded down at the book.

Hinata stared at him.

“Sorry about your book,” he repeated shortly.

“It’s….it’s okay.” Hinata offered him back a smile. “Your sword seemed to go straight though, anyway; who knows it’s probably even still readable.” He winced down at the book. “....well mostly. I guess it was worth it in the end, though.”

“I’d argue otherwise,” Kuroo muttered from in front of them, rubbing at his still red cheek.

Hinata refrained from making a rude gesture to his back. “Got you out of the way, didn’t it?” He turned with wide eyes back at Aone, smile brightening. “That block was  _ so fast,  _ by the way! I barely had time to see it, much less move for it! It was awesome.”

“Could you  _ please _ stop complimenting things that nearly kill us,” Kuroo complained. 

Both Aone and Hinata ignored him.

“Your throws were good, too,” Aone said, passive face taking on a slightly pleased air.

“Really?” Hinata looked down, trying to look sheepish and modest and--most importantly-- _ not  _ suspicious. “Not like it was that hard. I mean those guards were barely a few steps away  _ and  _ already distracted.”

“Still good.” Aone nodded. “Teacher?”

“Oh, um,” Hinata thought of Ukai and the million and one styles he’d forced into his head and drilled until none of them looked distinctive. “I guess necessity mostly. Hunting, you know?”

In front of them, Kenji turned until he was walking backwards as he led them even further from the docks. “And what’s your name, oh, Mr. Hunter?”

“Hinata Asahi,” Hinata lied with a smile. “And not a hunter, not anymore. I’m a palace servant.”

“Yeah?” Kenji turned back to Kuroo. “You often travel with a servant, Ace of Diamonds.”

Kuroo’s eye twitched at the name. “No.”

“We sort of didn’t have a choice in the matter,” Hinata explained apologetically.

“That so?” Kenji tapped his chin. “And that’s a story I’m going to be so excited to hear. Lucky for you. Running into some friendly folk like me and Aone here.”

“So lucky,” Kuroo deadpanned.

Kenji’s smirked. “The  _ luckiest _ .”

Hinata looked around as the surroundings started to shift from sand to larger rocks. Kuroo’s crutch hit awkwardly, sticking in sand and sliding on the wet rock.

“How much further until your ship,” Hinata asked.

“Just a little further,” Kenji replied. “Couldn’t exactly leave it out for the Navy to find, could we?”

They continued onward, the rock getting more jagged and the ocean crashing more roughly against the shore, torn by stone jutting out of the waves as cliffs started to rise around them.

Kenji winked at them. “Navy doesn’t like to come out here. Too much risk for their precious ships.” He leaned in closer, smiling at Hinata like he was imparting a secret. “See, the legend is that the caves and the rocks that surround them are like Futakuchi herself. Good natured by themselves, fine if you come in peace. But, the moment they sense you wish to harm them….” Kenji threw his hands wide. “The ocean floor itself rises up to sink them, dragging their souls down to the bottom of the sea to rot forever.”

Kenji smirk widened, turning back to Kuroo. “So, Ace of Diamonds, let’s hope for your soul’s sake, your intentions to our fine islands are honorable or the ocean itself may eat you and your entire kingdom whole.” He eyed the crutch and Kuroo’s face skeptically. “What’s left of you, I mean.”

Kuroo rolled his eyes. “Bullshit.”

“Maybe.” Kenji shrugged. “But, I can promise you that if you bring any harm to my crew, it won’t be the ocean you need to worry about.”

The captain and the Ace stared down for another few moments before Kuroo finally ended it in a huff.

“I have no plans to harm your crew or the islands,” Kuroo said flatly. “Besides,  _ Cards  _ is Futakuchi’s longest ally. Your islands wouldn’t even  _ be  _ a country if not for Cards’ support.”

“With the bonus of slighting Nohebi and Hyakuzawa, I’m sure.” Kenji sounded amused. “Not to mention you’re a couple hundred years late if you’re still using our Independence War as an arguing point. Is Cards that desperate, you’re bringing up history as a bargaining chip? Makes me even more suspicious, honestly.”

“Would you rather me talk about the War of Songs,” Kuroo said, voice filled with false cheer.

Kenji’s smirk twitched in annoyance at the historically much loathed and embarrassing war between Nohebi and the Futakuchi Islands. 

“Or,” Kuroo continued, “if you want something more recent, how about the Five Year War? We were allies then, too.”

Kenji snorted. “Still a century ago. You’ll have to do better than that, Ace.” 

“Yeah? You want to talk about the  _ newest _ ?” Kuroo’s cheer dropped off into dead seriousness. “Don’t forget that  _ your  _ islands were the ones that ended the alliance with Cards. Without even a courtesy notice, by the way, before you closed yourselves behind your nice Iron Wall and left  _ our  _ dock towns to deal with your leftovers. I was barely thirteen then. How’s that for  _ recent _ ?”

Kenji grimaced, jerking his head away and the air fell back into tense silence.

“Um,” Hinata looked between the two. “Why did Futakuchi go isolationist so suddenly?”

Kenji shrugged, the gesture sharp until he smoothed it out in the last second.

“How should I know?” The smile returned, only slightly forced. Kenji lifted a hand to his heart. “I’m just a simple sea trader.”

“And a pirate,” Hinata added.

“That, too.” Kenji’s smile widened.

“Awfully well informed on history for a simple sea trader,” Kuroo muttered, narrowing his eyes.

“Why thank you,” Kenji said easily before pulling to a stop in front of a particularly large cave. “And, look at that, we’re here.”

Hinata peaked his head from behind him.

His jaw dropped.

Because floating right in the middle of the cave was the most beat up ship that Hinata had ever seen in his entire life. The hull was a mess of scratched wood, tended and patched but not enough to fully hide the marks. The sails were full of patches, lovingly mended of different colored fabric that was clearly the best available at the time. Even the mast had a figure that might have once been a mermaid but had been busted up enough that she was missing half of her side.

“Welcome to the Last Resort,” Kenji announced.

“No kidding,” Kuroo muttered. 

Kenji ignored him, letting out a loud whistle. “Oi! Lower us a plank, we’ve got injured down here!”

“Captain?!” A short man with messy black hair stuck his head over the side. He took one look at Kuroo and Hinata. “Captain, what did you do?”

Kenji rolled his eyes. “Hurry it up, Sakunami! Two Navy bastards were murdered, too, so they’ll probably be shutting down this entire island soon. I’d  _ appreciate  _ getting out before then.”

“Captain,  _ what did you do?! _ ” Sakunami moaned again but a plank was obligingly lowered down, with just enough incline to walk up it if they were careful.

Kenji turned to Aone. “Why do they never assume  _ you’re  _ the one who did something?”

Aone just smiled quietly.

They had barely made it up to the deck before they were ambushed by a small crowd of men.

“What the fuck, Captain, you murdered some guardsmen,” demanded a man with short cropped brown hair.

“Now, dear, dear Fukiage, of course, I didn’t,” Kenji pointed back. “ _ Those _ two did. We’re just aiding and abetting.” He then turned to the rear and shouted. “Onagawa! Wasn’t kidding about them closing down the island! Get us out of here!”

A man with thick black hair, who looked like he was half falling asleep by the wheel, gave a lazy thumbs up before gesturing to the rest of the crew. Underneath them, the ship started shifting and Hinata grabbed quickly at the rail, trying and failing to find his equilibrium.

“Oh, cool,” someone shouted.

Hinata looked up and, then, he fought back a groan. He swore half of Futakuchi seemed like it was made of literal giants.

The newest giant, had dark hair, half dyed blond and a beaming grin spread across his face.

The man looked between Kuroo and Hinata before back at Kenji. “New crew members, yeah?”

_ “No _ ,” Kuroo and Kenji said nearly at once.

“Awww,” the new giant pouted. “But, I’m tired of being the newest! What if we bribe them? I can bake!”

Kenji sighed heavily, grabbing Kuroo and Hinata and steering them away from the crew. “Please ignore Koganegawa. We found him a few weeks after the Navy marooned him, still attention starved I think. Not sure if he was like that before or just after.”

“Before!” Koganegawa scoffed, sticking out his tongue as Kenji pulled them away.

“Um,” a  _ still tall _ man with buzzed hair tilted his head, assessing Kuroo and Hinata, “do they need medical attention?”

“Not yet, Obara” Kenji said decisively before either of them could answer.

“Denying medical aid to the wounded.” Kuroo tsked. “Yet another example of Futakuchi hospitality, I suppose.”

Kenji gave him a look. “Considering how I found you, I think you’ll be able to survive for a meeting.” His eyes narrowed. “And I am  _ not  _ trusting you around my crew until I find out why you’re here.”

Kuroo still grumbled under his breath, but obviously agreed at least somewhat as he didn’t try to argue as they were led further to the back of the ship where the captain’s quarters stayed.

“Sit,” Kenji ordered, sitting himself on the other side of a desk while Aone stood at his right side.

Hinata and Kuroo both sat, the later purposefully more mulish than the first.

For his own self, Hinata was far more interested in the cabin itself than the minor stare down Kenji and Kuroo seemed to be up to. Despite the ship’s overall appearance, their Captain’s office was nicely kept and well ordered--parchments and scrolls stacked neatly and filed away in a way that reminded Hinata strikingly of Tsuki’s office. Some of the parchments were older, too. Notes half written beside them--logs, histories.

Hinata didn’t know much about pirates; but, he knew smugglers tended toward more recent information--latest guard movements, current prices, decidedly not compiled histories. And even more than knowing smugglers, Hinata  _ knew _ what information gathering looked like.

The question was why was a  _ pirate  _ so interested in the workings of what looked like the whole of Futakuchi.

Hinata smiled easily as both the Captain and Aone were still focused warily on Kuroo.

He really did love being treated like a servant, spies were so rarely invited to people’s offices. Even more helpful with Kuroo beside him to provide a far more eye-catching distraction.

Beside him, the staring contest finally ended with neither side looking satisfied at the results.

“I believe you owe us a story, Ace of Diamonds,” Kenji finally said.

“‘Owe’ is a strong word,” Kuroo remarked.

Kenji smiled. “Not as strong as the Navy’s steel I assure you  _ or  _ King Hotaka’s sword if he finds a foreign leader has snuck across Futakuchi’s border. Why I’d even imagine he’d be willing to negotiate with a pirate for that information.”

Hinata noticed the way Aone’s hands tensed slightly at Kenji’s last words, controlled almost as soon as he moved the way Hinata would expect from a skilled swordsman.

“I  _ told  _ you,” Kuroo rolled his eyes, “we’re not here as Futakuchi’s enemies.”

“Then why are you here,” Kenji pressed.

“Believe me it wasn’t my choice,” Kuroo said before grimacing. “We were...I was….captured.”

“Seem like you’re free now,” Kenji drawled, “I expect you want me to believe you escaped even in  _ your  _ state? Not to mention the fact that people don’t normally ‘capture’ servants.”

Kuroo glared. “I don’t see the point in telling you anything if you’re not going to believe me when I do.”

“I’ll believe you when I’m sure you’re not hiding anything,” Kenji returned just as evenly. “ _ And  _ when I make sure you’re not a danger to the Futakuchi Islands.”

“Says the pirate,” Kuroo accused. “What happened to ‘on the same side’?”

Kenji cocked a brow. “Against the Navy? Sure.” His lips thinned. “But, there’s a  _ lot  _ more people on these islands then just the Navy bastards and, if you think I’m choosing anyone--royal or not--over my own home, then I’d be happy to show you how wonderful the ocean floor really is.”

Another stare down started again and Hinata spoke up before it could get any more tense.

“Your Highness, please,” he began, just remember to keep his voice lowered like one would expect from a servant addressing royalty….Hinata had never been very good at that part. “Allow me to explain.”

Kuroo jerked his gaze away from Kenji before nodding shortly at Hinata.

Hinata smiled, purposefully trying to seem just the right amount of nervous.

Tsuki always said that his greatest strength was that absolutely  _ no one  _ expected him to be a threat. Hinata was counting on it.

“We didn’t mean to end up in Futakuchi,” Hinata said earnestly, carefully picking which details he could say while still keeping it true. “We’re supposed to be at Diamond’s Winter Festival; but, we were attacked last night.” He didn’t mention who did the attacking. “We think it was an assassination attempt against our Ace.” He didn’t mention what Ace. He looked down, letting himself shiver. “We weren’t expected to survive. We think….we think they believe we’re dead….or Ace Kuroo at least.” He looked back up. “They brought us here to dump our bodies.”

Kenji was frowning now, but at least was looking less suspicious.

“Who attacked you,” he asked Kuroo.

Kuroo shrugged. “Didn’t recognize them.”

That was...partially true.

“Why did they dump you  _ here _ ,” Kenji pressed. “How did they get past the blockade?”

“We don’t know.” Hinata grimaced. “That’s one of the things we’re trying to find out. All we know is that they threw us overboard, tied up and with weights strapped to our feet. We barely we’re able to make it to shore. According to the town, no one even recognized the ship.”

Kenji’s frown was deeper now. He traded a look with Aone. “Not many ships come through here that  _ nobody  _ recognizes. Even if they’re not the ones you mention in front of the Navy.”

Hinata shrugged.

Kenji’s eyes flickered back to him. “What about you?  _ Him,  _ I get. How’d a palace servant get involved?”

“Wrong place, wrong time,” Hinata said, sorta kinda truthfully. He followed it up with a big fat lie. “I’m new, was trying to finish up the last of my chores when I heard Ace Kuroo getting attacked.” He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to look appropriately traumatized. “Apparently they didn’t want any witnesses.”

Kenji was still tapping a finger against his desk.

Hinata sighed, slumping his shoulders. “Look, we’re just looking for a way to get home or….or at least let them know we’re  _ alive _ . An assassination attempt puts our entire country at risk,  _ especially  _ if they think it’s successful. And….and I have family, friends that--” He cut himself off, “please if you just know a Mage, someone who can help us send a message--”

“And maybe good at healing.” Kuroo gestured to his leg.

“That, too,” Hinata tacked on.

Kenji sighed. “We don’t know any Mages, especially not ones powerful enough to--”

“The capital,” Aone said quietly.

Kenji looked up at him, glaring slightly.

“The capital,” Hinata grabbed onto it hopefully.

Aone nodded. “Moniwa could do it.”

“Moniwa’s stuck in a tower twenty four hours a day,” Kenji bit back. “Plus, with a few dozen guards at any time so I’m thinking that’s a definite no.”

“Sasaya could help get him,” Aone said. “Or Kamasaki

Kenji waved a hand dismissively. “And why would they do that?”

“They would if you asked,” Aone said and now his voice was firm.

A long moment of silence followed where Kenji openly glared at Aone while the larger man kept a smooth, perfectly passive face.

“I think…,” Kenji said slowly, still not looking away from Aone, “that it’s time our  _ guests  _ see Obara. See what our resident medic can fix up while I talk to my first mate.”

Kuroo and Hinata shared a glance, not moving.

“You’ll find him on the deck,” Kenji said shortly and quite clearly signaling the end of conversation. “Unless you _don’t_ want medical help anymore.”

Kuroo and Hinata both stood, Hinata heading to the door to hold it open while Kuroo grabbed his crutch.

Kuroo tossed one look back at Kenji. “If it makes a difference, I’m sure my Suit would be  _ very  _ grateful. Even to a pirate.”

Surprisingly, Aone was the one who smiled--a brief little thing.

Kenji pointed at the door.  _ “Go. _ ”

They left, shutting the door on the captain and his first mate.

Hinata looked at Kuroo. “They’re hiding something.”

“Oh, definitely,” Kuroo agreed immediately. “But, then again, so are we. Let’s just hope we find out what their secret is before it tries to kill us. I’m  _ really _ tired of almost dying.”

Hinata huffed a laugh. “You get used to it.”

“I don’t believe you.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

On the other side of the door, Kenji hadn’t dropped his glare.

“I know what you’re trying to do,” he said flatly.

Aone inclined his head. “Your Highness.”

The glare darkened. “I am  _ not _ ‘Your Highness’. They made sure of  _ that  _ a long time ago.”

“Your Majesty, then,” Aone said, swapping from the title of prince to king.

_ “Aone _ ,” Kenji warned. “Don’t even try it.”

“Don’t?”

Kenji scoffed. “Oh, like you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“I do as I’ve always done,” Aone said equanimously, “serve Futakuchi’s rightful king.”

Kenji glared for another second before he found it as equally useless as it always was with Aone. Then, he threw back his head and sighed  _ loudly _ .

“For my so called loyal knight, Aone, you are inordinately argumentative,” Kenji complained.

“Yes, Your Highness.” 

And Kenji could just  _ tell  _ Aone was messing with him. He knew it, even as the man’s face stayed as stoic as ever.

“Your  _ captain _ ,” Kenji argued on principle.

The curve of Aone’s mouth was almost a smile. “Captain.”

Kenji rolled his eyes. “Whatever. We’re  _ still _ not helping them.”

“Brought to the ship,” Aone reminded.

“Okay, then, we’re not helping them  _ anymore _ ,” Kenji corrected. “We’ve got what I wanted out of them already. Cards probably isn’t planning some weird sneak attack and Futakuchi’s still safe. I’m satisfied. We get Obara to heal them up a bit, drop them off on the next convenient port, and wash out hands with them.” He paused. “Really, we’re lucky enough that Ace wasn’t able to recognize  _ me _ as well.”

Aone hummed.

“Yeah, you’re right.” Kenji waved a hand dismissively. “I was like….twelve, I think, when Dad dragged me to Diamonds’ coronation. We’re probably safe. Anyway, point is give it a few days and we can safely forget about Diamonds’ Ace and whatever royal mess they’ve gotten themselves into.”

“The ship,” Aone said.

“So what?” Kenji shrugged. “So, some random unknown ship’s drowning Cards’ monarchs. Why should I care? Even if they got passed the Iron Wall somehow. It’s not like I can reasonably be expected to keep up with every one of Futakuchi’s hundreds of smugglers.”

Aone very pointedly eyed the various parchments laid out on Kenji’s desk, at least half of which detailing other pirates and smugglers favored trade routes.

“Alright,” Kenji acknowledged, annoyed, “then, I think we can ignore  _ this  _ one.”

“The Ace was right,” Aone said. “Cards is an ally.”

“ _ Was  _ an ally,” Kenji argued. “I think it’s fair to say Uncle Hotaka let  _ that  _ relationship drop the moment he sent out the Wall.” 

“They’d owe us,” Aone persisted evenly. “With Cards’ help, we could win.”

The pause that followed was deep and very, very treacherous like the sea that laid below them.

“Aone,” Kenji said and his voice had the ring of finality, “I have no interest in reclaiming the throne. They got rid of me  _ for a reason _ and I’m not selfish enough to disagree. Let. It. Go.”

Aone took another second before he let out a small breath of air that was almost a sigh. He bowed his head. “Yes, Your Highness.”

Kenji looked over the title, just this one time.

“We should still help.” Aone said once he looked back up.

“Ugh, for  _ nothing _ ?” Kenji huffed. “Aone! That’s even worse! Did you forget that we’re pirates!  _ Why? _ ”

“Because,” Aone’s gaze was serious, “they miss their home.”

Kenji met Aone’s eyes, looking almost betrayed and maybe even hurt for half a second before it was sealed away behind an impassive mask.

“.....I’ll think about it,” Kenji said eventually, “but only because it gets them out of my islands faster.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed! Thanks, everyone, for your support of this story--you amazing, amazing people!
> 
> Next Post Date: July 24-26
> 
> Always feel free to find me on tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	4. Chapter 4

_ 5 Days Prior to Diamonds Winter Festival _

_ Tsukishima Akiteru. _

_ Tsukishima Akiteru. _

_ Tsukishima…. _

_ Hinata scrubbed a hand harshly through his hair and resisted the urge to crumple up his notes and throw them out the window. _

Huh,  _ he thought dully,  _ Now, I know why Tsuki’s annoyed all the time.

_ Over two weeks of nearly constant search and Hinata still had next to nothing. He’d looked through  _ everything _ \--tax records, census data, family registries, anything. It was like Tsukishima Akiteru didn’t even exist.  _

_ Well...okay, not quite true. Hinata  _ knew  _ he existed. That was the first thing he’d checked. Because maybe there was some kind of mistake. A shared name, an alias, something that meant the smuggled in Mage wasn’t actually related to their Tsuki. _

_ But, there it was--right on Spades’ own public records. Tsukishima Akiteru, born 721 A.E. and six years before his little brother Tsukishima Kei. And, then, nothing…. _

_ Hinata had a headache. _

_ And he couldn’t escape the feeling that it would be so, so much easier if he could just talk to Tsuki. _

_ He wasn’t going to do that, though. He couldn’t. _

_ Tsuki didn’t know his family, was entrusted to Takeda and the Spades Suit’s guardianship when he was barely a few months old. In all the years that Hinata had known him, he’d never heard him even mention his family, much less an older brother. _

_ Which meant Tsuki didn’t know. _

_ Hinata didn’t know much about his own family either. He remembered the shape of his mother’s smile, the wood smell of his old village, and an even more distant memory of his father’s hair only a bit lighter than his own. Hinata barely knew his family and was mostly fine with that. Fine with holding his few cherished memories close and making so many more with the family he’d found in the capital. _

_ But, what would it feel like to find you had a brother, only to learn he may be a traitor to everything you spent your life building? _

_ Hinata couldn’t do that to Tsuki.  _

_ Not until he couldn’t avoid it any longer. Not until he had proof. _

_ And that meant that, for once, he had to do this on his own. To tell anyone else  _ before  _ Tsuki just felt wrong. _

_ Hinata sighed, rubbing his eyes and looking back at the notes. _

_ Tsukishima Akiteru. Aoi’s smuggling ship. A possible attack against Cards. And a new group calling themselves the Hawks. _

_ That was what he had. That’s what he could connect. _

_ That was fine. Hinata could do this. Fates, he’d been doing this for years. Tsuki and him had worked on far less than this and they’d  _ always  _ been able to do it. _

_ He could…. _

_ Hinata very adamantly did not smack his head on the table. _

_ He had no clue where to look next. _

_ Hinata shoved his notes back into the journal, holding it tightly and pushing out of his room. He needed to  _ move.

_ Like they did more often than not, his feet dragged him up--up stairs and balconies, onward to the tallest parts of the castle that he could reach from this wing. _

_ He was stopped a few stories up, at the castle wall that overlooked the courtyard. _

_ “Hey,” Daichi, the Knights Captain, smiled at him, “you come to see them off, too?” _

_ Hinata blinked, looking down to where the rest of his Suit were handling the final preparations to leave for the Winter Festival in Diamonds. Hinata had opted to stay behind this time, giving Kageyama a chance to interact more with the rest of the kingdom….and for Hinata to continue his investigation while  _ not  _ under the nose of Tsuki, possibly the only one alive that could smell out Hinata’s secrets like a Fates’ cursed bloodhound.  _

_ The last few weeks had been….stressful. _

_ “Yeah,” Hinata said instead, “glad I didn’t miss them.” _

_ “Close,” Daichi commented and just as he said it, the lead guard led their horse through the gate, the rest of the caravan following after them. _

_ Hinata waved down to Kageyama, even if he knew he couldn’t see him, and he glanced over to see Daichi giving an absolutely sappy grin to Suga. _

_ “I hate saying goodbye,” he confessed. “Even if it’s just for a week. That’s why I wanted to watch from up here.” _

_ “I do, too,” Hinata admitted and lowered his voice, “Leaving’s always harder than coming back. And watching  _ other  _ people leave is the absolute worst.” _

_ Daichi sighed, sounding wistful. “Guess it’s enough to know they’re coming back.” _

_ “That’s the important part,” Hinata agreed. _

_ He wondered how many missions he’d left on and almost not come back. A few dozen? A hundred? He was always bad about remembering things like that. And, really, it seemed like as long as he made it through in the end, learned more, got better, then everyone else would rather forget about the  _ almosts  _ and  _ maybes,  _ too _ . 

_ The past could be moved on from while the present was immediate and the future always rolling forward. _

_ It felt different watching other people leave. _

_ Even if they’d come back. _

_ “Oh, sorry, I almost forgot, ” Daichi dug in his pockets, “I’ve got a letter for you. A fisherman passed it off to the guard at the front gate.” _

_ “Me?” Hinata frowned as Daichi passed over what was barely a scrap of paper, almost half covered in wax as if someone had been in a rush to seal it. _

_ Daichi nodded. “Apparently he was really in a hurry about it, too. Ennoshita didn’t even get his name.” _

_ “Huh.” Hinata broke the seal _

Hinata, I need you to get the Ace. It’s urgent. Tell him some old clients of mine hired me to go to Diamonds. He’ll know what it means. -Aoi

_ The note clenched in Hinata’s hands. _

_ “I need to go,” he said abruptly. _

_ Daichi was frowning. “Everything alright?” _

_ “I need to find Yachi,” Hinata said. “Sick relative, gotta leave town. Now.” _

_ “Oh,” Daichi said. He might even have said more but Hinata was already gone.  _

_ He found Yachi in the middle of Tsuki’s office, cataloging some of his latest notes. _

_ “Yachi!” He grabbed her shoulders. _

_ She jumped. “Hinata--” _

_ “I need to go to Diamonds,” he interrupted. _

_ “What?” Yachi frowned. “Hinata, the rest of the Suit just left. It’s too late to swap Suit members for the festival; we need someone in Spades.” _

_ “I know.” Hinata’s mind was already flying. Old clients--it had to be the Hawks, which meant it had to be Tsukishima Akiteru. Diamonds--there was no other reason to suddenly move; festivals were always a huge security risk. Something was going to happen. It had to be. And Hinata had to find out what.  _

_ He made a decision. “Yachi, no one else can know the Ace of Spades is gone, okay?” _

_ “Who’s going to run the castle,” Yachi asked. _

_ Hinata almost snorted. “Yachi, we both know you’re  _ much  _ better at that part than me, anyway.” _

_ “Hinata,” Yachi was still frowning. _

_ “It’s important. I wouldn’t leave if it wasn’t important.” Hinata swallowed, reaching in his own vest for his notes. He pressed the journal into her hands. “Here, take this?” _

_ “What is it,” she asked cautiously. _

_ He grinned. “Just protocol. If anything happens, if I don’t come back, just give that to Tsuki, alright? Only Tsuki. It’s important.” _

_ Yachi’s hands clenched on the notes. “Hinata, what’s going on?” _

_ “I’m not sure yet.” He breathed out. “But, I’m going to find out.” _

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The spies were staring at him in stunned silence.

Noya tried to swallow, couldn’t, before finally choking out, “Shouyou’s  _ dead _ ?”

Tsukishima’s eye twitched.

“No,” he said flatly. “Fates, didn’t you hear me?”

“You said he’d been stabbed and fell off the cliffs,” Asahi said, voice faint.

“Exactly, he’s fine.” Tsukishima waved a hand dismissively. “Except, of course, for the fact that both him and Diamonds’ Ace have apparently been captured and we’ve had no luck tracking them.”

Noya, Asahi, and Shimizu exchanged a look, expressions blank. Tsukishima very much did not grit his teeth. He swore the absolute worst part about working with spies was they were remarkably talented at hiding their thoughts when the need arose--even from their spymaster. Except for Hinata, of course. Tsukishima had years of unfortunately close experience reading  _ him. _

Then why didn’t he know what Hinata was working on?

Whatever. He’d find out soon enough.

Why didn’t he tell him?

Tsukishima brushed the thought away hard.

The spies had turned back to him.

“You want us to check for leads,” Shimizu surmised, always the quickest to cut to the heart of the matter.

Tsukishima nodded. “Mostly, focus on the capital first. Travel would be hard and we can assume if Hinata is conscious he’s giving an effort to make it harder. I need you and Asahi to check among the town, the palace. See who’s talking and more importantly see who’s  _ not. _ Go through every intel we have of criminal organizations working in Diamonds. And, remember, subtlety’s always preferred; but, we’re missing two Aces in a festival so time’s the priority.”

Shimizu and Asahi nodded.

“What about me,” Noya asked.

“From what I’ve been hearing, we actually need you back home,” Tsukishima remarked. “Rumors already spread in the town that two of Cards Aces died fighting each other. Hopefully a few careful Ace of Spades sightings will cut it off before it hits Spades.”

“Rumor shouldn’t have spread that quick,” Shimizu said quietly.

“I know,” Tsukishima agreed. “Which is why the  _ second  _ objective is to find out how it spread and who’s spreading it, that might be our first lead to who’s keeping Hinata and Kuroo.”

The spies all nodded, each carefully taking in their own mission and beginning to plan.

Tsukishima let out a sigh, reminding himself that necessity superseded preference.

“One more question,” he said.

The spies looked up.

“What did Hinata tell you about his current mission?”

Noya frowned. “What current mission? I thought you guys finished up that thing with the counterfeit Clubs’ artifacts a week ago?”

“We did,” Tsukishima said begrudgingly. “I’m talking about the mission that brought him  _ here,  _ to Diamonds’ Festival.”

The spies were all frowning now, some more obvious than others.

“Um,” Asahi scratched the back of his neck, “could we have a bit more detail?”

“No.” Tsukishima swallowed down his pride. “He didn’t tell me.”

Shimizu’s eyes widened, just a fraction. “Hinata didn’t tell you his mission?”

“What? Why,” Noya blurted out.

Why didn’t Hinata trust him?

Tsukishima moved forward like it didn’t matter. “We’re not sure yet.”

Asahi was biting at his lip, seeming nervous.

Tsukishima zeroed in on it.

“You know something,” he stated.

“No,” Asahi shook his head. “....no, I don’t, not really. It’s just….,” he sighed, “Hinata’s been busy lately.”

“Busy how,” Tsukishima asked.

And why didn’t he notice?

Asahi shrugged a bit helplessly. “Nothing really that noticeable. Carrying around notes more, not having time to practice as much, going through the old records.” He scratched at his chin. “It’s just been for the last month or so, I think, I figured he was just helping get things ready for the festival.”

A month. Tsukishima hadn’t noticed for a month.

Noya was looking contemplative now.

“Hinata knows the protocols more than practically anyone. He’d  _ never  _ choose to just do things alone if he thought there was a better choice,” he said slowly. “So, whatever he was doing….he had to have a good reason, right?”

Tsukishima didn’t smile. “Yes, he must have.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Hinata was dying.

He was actually, physically, mentally, possibly even spiritually dying.

It didn’t matter that Obara, the ship’s medical examiner, said it would pass. Hinata knew, he  _ knew  _ that nobody could possibly feel this terrible and still live through it.

Above him, Kuroo was smirking.

“Shut up,” Hinata muttered darkly, trying to put every bit of spite he could possibly manage through the pounding headache and a new wave of dizziness.

“How can you get seasick,” Kuroo whispered to him, sounding fascinated and apparently immune to any measure of spite despite how viciously Hianta was sending it. “I’ve literally seen you walk on your hands and backward for an entire hour just to amuse Kenma. You get nauseous over a  _ ship. _ ”

“It’s different,” Hinata whined, leaning halfway over the bow of the ship and trying to focus on the horizon.

“How?”

“Because  _ I’m  _ the one moving!”

And, then, he clenched his stomach, hearing what he’d learned was a very,  _ very  _ dangerous sound.

In his defense, Kuroo  _ tried  _ to look at least semi-sympathetic, it still came out mostly amused.

“I can’t wait to brag to Tsukishima,” Kuroo teased, passing him the mug of fresh water, “Spades’ mighty Ace brought low by a few leagues of ocean and a beat up boat.”

Hinata  _ almost  _ stabbed him.

He drank the water instead and felt just a tiny bit better.

“Think we can convince Kenji or Aone,” Hinata asked as soon as he’d drained the last of it.

“I think it’s our best shot,” Kuroo said.

“Then, we convince them,” Hinata said decisively, clinging to the hints of a plan instead of the way his head was spinning.

They hadn’t seen the Captain of the ship all morning, not since last night when they’d been shown to a small, slightly damp corner in the crew’s cabin and told Kenji was still deciding where to drop them off.

“If we get a Mage, an  _ actual  _ Mage,” Kuroo said, “we can send them a message.”

“Yeah, but, Mages that strong are rare.” Hinata frowned. “Any way you look at it, I don’t think we’re finding one outside of the capital.”

Kuroo grimaced. “The Futakuchi Islands  _ were  _ technically an ally before the Wall. What do you think are the chances I can just….walk up, ask King Hotaka, and get a royal escort home?”

Hinata just gave him a look. Neither of them had to bring up the Iron Wall or the fear the Futakuchi islanders had around the Royal Navy. 

Whatever the Futakuchi Islands was now, they weren’t an ally.

Not one they could trust.

Kuroo let out a sigh through his teeth. “Would be nice if this was easy for once.”

Hinata nodded. “If Kenji and Aone really know people that can get us to a Mage, we should stick with them.”

“If they let us,” Kuroo added. “ _ If  _ they don’t just throw us off at the next port.”

“Of course, they’ll keep us,” Hinata grinned. “We’re awesome!”

And, then, his stomach rolled and he heaved over the side of the ship.

When it was finally over, he drooped over the side. “I hate this. I  _ hate  _ this so much. I’m never going on a ship again!”

There was a low whistle behind them and both of them turned to see the Captain heading across the deck, a new mug of water in his hands and Aone by his side.

He handed the mug to Hinata, waiting as he guzzled it down.

Kenji leaned down next to him. “Shorty, it pains me to say this; but, you may just not be built for this island life.”

“Just throw me over,” Hinata muttered, only half joking.

“Aww, now why would we do that,” Kenji teased. “We’ve just decided to help you.”

Kuroo narrowed his eyes. “Really?”

“Well, don’t be too grateful,” Kenji sniffed. “At a cost, of course. We’re pirates, after all. Once the Futakuchi Islands open up to trading again, Diamonds is going to owe us  _ big _ . And don’t think we won’t cash in.”

It was the better part of valor that neither side mentioned that it was unlikely that the Futakuchi Islands  _ ever  _ opened back up to trade, at least not during the current kingship.

“Done,” Kuroo agreed. “Help us and you’ve got a favor from Diamonds, maybe from Cards in general depending on how good that help is.”

“Oh, my help is always excellent,” Kenji said dryly. “Really above reproach, ask anyone.” He waved a hand, cutting Kuroo off before he could snark back. “Anyway, I’ve already had Onagawa adjust the course for the capital. First piece of bad news is that I only know  _ one  _ Mage powerful enough to send a message across the entire ocean and he lives in the castle. They don’t particularly like us pirates there and I’ve got a hunch they won’t like you two any more.”

“So, we ask the Mage to come out,” Kuroo said.

“Ahh, and that’s the second bad news,” Kenji continued. “Moniwa’s not exactly allowed to leave, not without a few score of royal guards and a King’s order at least. Which means we need to go to him.”

“You want us to sneak into the palace,” Hinata asked in surprise.

“That depends,” Kenji said. “How badly do you want to send that message?”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The words on the page weren’t focusing properly.

It was irritating.

Instead of the words, Kenma found himself focusing on the cut of the page (slightly uneven), the quality of the pages (rich parchment but worn with age), the binding (second hand, rebound, old), some of the pages had been folded and--

_ Larger hands straightening pages. Muttering stray thoughts under his breath when he didn’t think anyone was watching. Mouth turning up into something too soft to be a smirk when he spotted Kenma in the corner. _

\--Kenma straightened the corners absently and doubled his focus on reading. He’d made it through a sentence when there was the faint sound of a knock echoing at his door.

He frowned, more of an impression of a down-turned lip than an actual expression.

“Come in,” he said quietly.

There was the sound of a rattling door and--

_ A child’s familiar dirt covered fingers tugging at Kenma’s smaller ones, making sure the glove covered the unclaimed Mark. Shoulders leaning on a door, trying to look casual in a way the awkward too long limbs of a teenager couldn’t quite manage. Eyes watching carefully, lazily brightening whenever Kenma decided to meet them. _

Iwaizumi opened the door and Kenma convinced himself he wasn’t disappointed.

The Ace of Hearts stepped in, hesitating slightly before he seemed to come to a decision and sat firmly in the seat across from Kenma.

Kenma watched him.

“I wanted to check on you,” Iwaizumi admitted, looking uncomfortable as he scrubbed a hand through his hair. “Everyone’s been so focused on trying to find them or dealing with the rumors crap or the festival that….and Oikawa mentioned and I thought I….,” He cut off the rush of a words in a grimace, focusing on Kenma. “Anyway, you okay?”

Kenma wondered if he should close the book. 

It would probably be polite, wouldn’t it? If Iwaizumi had come to talk to him, then it would show he was listening, that he was paying attention.

But…

Kenma was looking at him--eyes cataloging details more than meeting head on, but still looking. That showed he was listening enough, right? That he was watching.

Kenma was  _ always  _ watching.

He decided he liked having the book open. It felt safe.

“I’m fine,” he said. Then, after a pause. “Thank you.”

Iwaizumi shifted in his seat.

Kenma watched.

The skin under the Ace’s eyes was baggy and dark (lack of sleep, light enough to be a new issue). His shirt was missing a button (in a hurry, distracted). His eyes were ready and hands were held steady, sword hanging easily at his belt (prepared for a fight if needed). He was chewing on his lip (thinking, probably for the next words...he wanted to continue talking).

Oh.

Oh…..he was worried.

Kenma probably should have guessed that already.

“You don’t have to worry about me,” he said.

Iwaizumi sighed. “I kind of feel like I  _ should,  _ though. I think Kuroo would want me, too. Would do it for me, for my Suit, if…..” 

He cut off again. People were doing that a lot, Kenma had noticed, as if they didn’t want to admit what they were actually thinking. It wasn’t a good sign.

Iwaizumi pressed on, picking a different track. “This is….no one expected this. I’m not sure what’s going to happen. Tsukishima seems confident that we’ll find them; but, I’m not sure what we’ll find.”

_ A grin with a bloody tooth, recently out of practice. Hands tense around a bow and eyes sharp. Defense plans strewn across a desk and their owner snoring on top of them, Kenma’s hand daring out to pat down his hair. _

Kenma didn’t react.

Iwaizumi winced anyway.

“Sorry, Kenma, I didn’t mean it like that.” A lie. Iwaizumi’s brow was still furrowed, his jaw clenched tighter than normal. “I just meant that I hope Tsukishima’s able to find them soon. Hopefully, the spies that came in can find something.” He scratched at his chin, offering up a short smile. “Guess times like these are why we really need an Ace of Spades, huh?”

_ Different memories, less conflicting but still painful. Bright hair and a windswept smile. Talking and aimless chatter that soothed around Kenma without expecting him to answer. A safe presence and a bright sound that made it easier to forget why words were the most difficult things to shape. _

Kenma nodded.

Iwaizumi was still looking at him like he was expecting something. Waiting.

Kenma didn’t know what he could give him.

Shouyou hardly ever needed his words, created an environment where Kenma didn’t  _ have  _ to speak.

And Kuroo….Kuroo had always shaped a world that could hear him, listening close enough to pick out the thoughts he needed and spoke them for him.

He didn’t have either here now.

Kenma waited in silence until Iwaizumi finally moved forward, nodding awkwardly and telling Kenma he’d talk to him later--Kenma hoped he wouldn’t.

Kenma watched him leave and didn’t say a single word.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kuroo was being watched.

He sighed, turning up from testing the sharpness of his new knife and raised a brow. “What?”

Koganegawa stared back, hanging his long legs off the upper deck. “So, are you  _ really  _ the Ace of Diamonds?”

Kuroo was having a very long week with the high probability of it getting even longer.

Additionally, he was waiting with the itch of impatience crawling up his spine.

Also, he was bored.

And, so, he cocked his head and drew on a face of utmost confusion. “The  _ what _ ?”

“The Ace of Diamonds.” Koganegawa waved a hand as if gesturing to something large. “You know one of Cards’ Aces! They’re supposed to have cool powers and be really awesome fighters and….,” he deflated suddenly, “wait, so does that mean you’re really  _ not  _ him? But Obara said--”

Kuroo shook his head sadly, biting back on a smirk. “The Cards’ Aces are just a myth.”

“What!” Koganegawa launched to his feet. “No they’re not!”

“Definitely a myth,” Kuroo said firmly. “Come on ‘special powers’? Chosen by Fate? Those are kids’ stories!”

Koganegawa’s mouth was hanging open. “You’re wrong, they’re  _ totally _ real! Everyone knows that!”

“Well, have you ever seen one,” Kuroo asked logically.

“No, but--” Koganegawa spluttered at the sight of Kuroo’s smirk. “Shut up! I just haven’t seen one because of the stupid blockade!”

“Sure,” Kuroo said, voice oozing doubtfulness.

“But, they’re--agh!” Koganegawa pointed. “They  _ have  _ to be real because the Ace of Spades is real! And he’s supposed to be terrifying!”

Kuroo rolled his eyes. “A real monster hiding under your bed, then?”

“No, a….a….”

Koganegawa fell back on the deck with a  _ thump,  _ looking blankly out on the horizon as if contemplating his entire life.

Kuroo patted his back comfortingly. “It’s okay. Just because the Cards’ Aces aren’t actually real, doesn’t mean the  _ spirit  _ of them isn’t still alive, right?” His smirk stretched out into a grin. “And really? Isn’t that the true magic?”

Koganegawa was still staring out blankly.

There was a loud sigh from behind them and they both turned to find the Captain glaring at them with crossed arms.

Kuroo waved.

Kenji gave him a look. “If you’d  _ please  _ stop giving my crew members existential crises, Ace of Diamonds.”

Koganegawa blinked, looking between the two. “Wait, but--”

Kuroo winked, calling up his Ace’s power and letting his eyes flare red. “You really shouldn’t believe everything people tell you.”

Koganegawa yelped, scrambling back on the deck and Kuroo turned back to Kenji.

“We ready,” he asked.

“As we’ll ever be,” Kenji said and threw him a dark cloak. “Get that servant of yours. I don’t want to spend a single second in the capital longer than I have to.”

Kuroo shrugged on the cloak, pulling on the hood. “What? Too many arrest warrants?”

“Something like that,” Kenji said dryly.

And that was all he said until Kuroo had grabbed Hinata, who was far too grateful to finally be on land again, and they were guided by Kenji and Aone past the deserted areas of rocks and abandoned beach and off to the small areas of dense jungle, still hidden in the early night. 

For the record and not at all something that he’d tell the man, Kuroo had really never missed Lev’s healing magic--comparatively unpracticed as it may be--quite as much as when he was limping through jungles and beaches with only a passable crutch to prop him up. His knee was newly bandaged, arm pulled into a sling, ribs taped up; but, there was only so much a part time healer like Obara could do without much strength in magic. 

Kuroo gritted his teeth and hoped very, very hard that this Mage they were finding also knew healing. Or at least that they’d stop having to go through so many Fates cursed jungles.

Finally, they made their way through the trees and….

“Oh, wow,” Hinata breathed out and, for once, Kuroo had to agree.

The Futakuchi palace was like nothing they’d ever seen before. Everything around the capital island was built with the palace as the highest point. The palace soared to the top, towering over everything and hung with flags billowing out almost like sails. Perhaps most unusual was the wood. Everything around the capital was crafted to feature the rich stained wood that shaped Futakuchi’s ships and the shells that lined their beaches, making the castle almost seem like something out of nature rather than built by man.

It was beautiful, strange as it was fascinating. And, with the lanterns beginning to glow in the night, it seemed warm.

Kenji and Aone both had their hoods up, watching the capital with wary eyes.

“Come on,” Kenji ordered, turning away, “If we’re finding them, it’ll be down here.”

“Who are we meeting anyway,” Hinata asked.

Kenji frowned, not looking like he was going to answer at first before he sighed. “Kamasaki and Sasaya. Sasaya’s a palace guard; Kamasaki works in the kitchen. Not to mention, they’ve been friends with Moniwa since they were kids. If anyone’s going to sneak you in and out of the palace, it’s them. Trust me.”

“And why would they help us,” Kuroo asked. “ _ Especially _ a palace guard.”

Kenji and Aone shared another look.

“Because they have a thing about sticking out their necks for people they probably shouldn’t,” Kenji said.

With that, Kenji led them down to the docks and into the sight of a tavern, practically bustling to the brim with people….and a large number of the Royal Navy.

Kuroo and Hinata stuck close to each other and, in front of them, they noticed Aone’s hand had come to rest on his sword barely a step behind Kenji, who looked calm and confident as ever.

“This way,” Kenji whispered over the crowd, leading them through the crowd until finally they spotted a tall man with sandy hair bickering back and forth with a kitchen worker about the price of fish. Even over the noise of the crowd, the men’s voices rang out, loud and just a step short of belligerent.

Kenji hummed. “Oh, look at that, he’s in a good mood.”

Aone grunted in a way that might’ve been amused.

The group waited until the kitchen worker smacked the blond man with a soaking wet towel, before stomping into the back and muttering insults under his breath the entire way.

“Cheapskate,” the blond man muttered. “By the bloody sea and the fuckin’ stones, that bastard’s going to--”

Kenji tapped on his shoulder.

“What?!” the man yelled before he turned and his face went pale. “Your H--”

“Kamasaki.” Kenji grinned. “Got a second to talk?”

Kamasaki looked at the group with wide eyes, narrowing for a second on Kuroo and Hinata.

Then, he dragged an arm around Kenji. “For you, you little brat, sure, I guess I can spare a few minutes.” He looked up at Aone. “How are you two hanging in there? Keepin’ him safe?”

Aone nodded.

Kamasaki smirked, holding strong as Kenji tried to fight his way out of the headlock. “Sure he’s making it hard on you.”

“Ha, ha,” Kenji said flatly, finally freeing himself. “I’m doing great, you know! Got a crew and everything now.  _ Loyal  _ ones, that don’t make fun of their captain!”

“Do you,” Kamasaki asked, and there was a current under the question--something that Kuroo couldn’t read even as Kamasaki looked between Aone and Kenji.

“Just a small one,” Kenji corrected quickly. “Big enough to get by,  _ not  _ for anything else.”

“Ah.”

And, if Kuroo wasn’t crazy, Kamasaki almost looked disappointed.

Kenji ignored it. “Where’s Sasaya? I thought he normally came with you.”

Kamasaki shrugged, looking tired. “He spoke back to the guard captain few months ago--nasty guy,  _ big  _ guy, one of King Hotaka’s old Navy buddies, I think. Palace has been working him to the bone ever since. Barely see him more than I see  _ Moniwa _ .”

Kenji led them back to one of the tavern’s dark corners, letting Aone stand between them and any Navy guards that happened closer.

“Moniwa’s kind of who I came to talk about,” Kenji admitted, voice low.

A complicated expression passed over Kamasaki’s face--hope, fear, anger--before finally it settled into exhaustion.

“It’s gotten worse then,” Kenji asked.

Kamasaki scrubbed a hand over his face. “Between the King and Otsuka, they’re not even letting him leave the palace anymore. Just keeping him up there in that fucking tower--might as well be a prison cell, no matter how nice they dress it up.” He scratched a nail down the table. “Almost makes me wish he’d never been any good at magic; then, at least, he could have had a lousy kitchen job where no one cares what you do.”

He sighed, looking back up. “Anyway, what do you want to talk about Moniwa for?”

“I think it would help more to show you,” Kenji said, eying Kuroo.

Kuroo narrowed his eyes. “You sure about this?”

“You want help or not,” Kenji asked.

Kuroo didn’t bother answering, but obligingly rolled up his sleeve, angling his arm to show away from the main tavern floor. Hinata was watching closely from beside him and Kuroo didn’t need to check to know he was preparing the knives in his sleeves for if this went wrong.

Kuroo pulled back the sleeve to his shoulder, showing the bright red diamond with the golden “A” and heard a sharp intake of breath from the other side of the table.

“You’re the Ace of Diamonds,” Kamasaki breathed out before surprisingly, his head jerked to the captain. “Kenji, why are you with  _ Cards’  _ Ace of Diamonds? Are you really planning--”

“I found him by chance,” Kenji interrupted abruptly. “We’re trying to get him home. We’re  _ just  _ trying to get him home.”

Kamasaki’s head swiveled to Hinata. “Then, who are you?”

“Just a servant.” Hinata smiled. “I just got dragged into this. Bad luck, I guess.”

Kuroo mentally rolled his eyes  _ hard. _

“Someone dumped them off here, thinking they were dead,” Kenji explained. “They’re trying to get a message back home, best one to do that is Moniwa.”

Kamasaki was still pale, eyes focused back entirely on Kenji. “You want me to sneak you into the palace.  _ You?  _ Are you insane?” He jerked his head up at Aone. “Are  _ you  _ insane for letting him?”

Aone frowned. “I’ll keep him safe.”

“It’s just for a few hours,” Kenji assured.

“This is crazy, Kenji.” Kamasaki looked down at the table, head in his hands. “Absolutely crazy.”

“So, is keeping a Cards’ Ace on the islands,” Kenji commented. “How long do you think we can keep that hidden? How long until people come looking for  _ him _ ?”

Kamasaki took two long, slow breaths.

“....okay,” he ran a hand through his hair, “ _ fuck,  _ okay, I’ll help you. But…,” he looked up, “Kenji, if I help you this time, I’m going to need a favor, too. Sorry, but it’s not for me and I have to do  _ something. _ ”

“What do you need,” Kenji asked.

“Moniwa can’t keep wasting away in a tower. Not under the King. All it’s doing is killing him slowly.” Kawasaki said bluntly. “And there’s no way they’re letting a Mage as powerful as him go. I couldn't do it alone, even if I got Sasaya to help; but with an  _ Ace… _ ”

He looked around the faces of the table.

“I’ll help you sneak in,” Kamasaki said. “But, you’ve gotta help me break Moniwa  _ out. _ ”

\-------

Asahi was back too early.

He shouldn't be here, not standing in front of the desk in the office that Yaku had arranged for Tsukishima. Scoping out a town took time. It took effort, listening to conversations, starting new ones, tracking, tracing, _finding_. It took _time_.

It had barely been a day. Deep night was settled in around them and Tsukishima wasn't wasting his time by sleeping.

And Asahi was here. _Too early._

Which meant they had found something.

But no one was speaking.

Asahi's lips were pressed tightly together and, if Tsukishima watched very closely he could tell that he was shaking. Which was wrong, of course. There wasn't much that Spades' spies hadn't seen, even the ones that preferred poison work. They didn't _shake._

They had found something and Asahi was shaking instead of speaking and Tsukishima was afraid.

He pushed the feeling down.

"Well," he demanded, "where's Shimizu?"

"She stayed behind," Asahi said softly.

Tsukishima nodded. "I take it you found a lead, then."

"....in a way," Asahi agreed and his lips pressed even tighter enough to be bloodless, his face following suit.

Tsukishima groaned, waving a hand impatiently. "Just tell me, Asahi. What did you find about Hinata?"

"Tsukishima...." Asahi swallowed and, for a second, he was just the shy, larger boy trying to stand between Hinata and Tsukishima's _many_ childhood arguments.

Tsukishima's heart was thrumming too fast in his chest.

"Kei," Asahi said, gentle but firm, "we found Shouyou's body."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys, so you know, all of you are awesome and amazing and I thank ya'll so much for your support of this story :) With that, I hope you enjoyed. For the record, I'm not trying to pull a fast one with you guys with like Hinata secretly being a ghost or time travel or anything. Hinata is still very much alive. I'm not that evil.
> 
> Next Post Date: August 8-9
> 
> Always feel free to find me on Tumblr where lately I've been talking Haikyuu and answering asks and doing headcanons for my series: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	5. Chapter 5

_ The Night of Diamonds Winter Festival _

_ He was running out of time. _

_ The rest of the Suits had arrived at Diamonds this afternoon. _

_ Fates, they’d already had the first of the Suit meetings which meant somewhere in the castle Suga, Kageyama, and Tsuki were readying for bed before the festival really got started the next day. _

_ And something was coming. _

_ Hinata  _ knew  _ it, could feel in his bones that he was right. _

_ But, he still didn’t know what it was. _

_ He’d arrived in Diamonds two days before--using his Ace power and running as fast he could to cut the trip in half. He’d spent his entire time checking the city, the taverns, the underbelly, even sneaking into the castle a few times to verify things when he needed to. _

_ There was nothing about Tsukishima Akiteru. _

_ To make it worse, he couldn’t find Aoi either. _

_ Hinata rested on the Spires of Diamonds, hidden in the shadows of the roofs. _

_ He looked up at the dark sky that had just started to rumble with thunder. _

_ It sounded like it was about to rain. _

_ The thunder grew louder. _

_ Actually, it sounded like a storm. _

_ Hinata closed his eyes and sighed. _

_ He needed to tell Tsuki. _

_ It was time. He wanted more, he wanted  _ proof  _ and explanations and, even more impossible, pretty words that would make it all sound better. That would make it sound like Tsuki’s brother wasn’t trying to betray their kingdom. _

_ But, Hinata was out of time and something was coming and Tsuki would never forgive him for even considering risking the kingdom over something as insignificant as sentiment that Tsuki himself always claimed he was born without.  _

_ Hinata dropped down easily to land on a ledge. _

_ Tsuki would be in the guest suite. Those were on the east side of the Diamonds’ palace, far on the other side of where Hinata was now. He knew the path by memory. Which was good, of course. It would give him time to think. _

_ He made it almost to the guest wing, changing back into servant clothes and sticking to the shadows to be less conspicuous. _

_ And, then, he heard a rustling on the next hall over. _

_ Hinata readied a knife, turning to the sound. _

_ It was already late into the night, far too late for anyone to be awake besides the guards that were set to watch the chambers. _

_ A shadow stood in the corridor, stock still and unmoving. _

_ Hinata recognized him _

_ “Aoi?” Hinata lowered his knife only slightly. “What are you doing in the palace?” _

_ “Hinata!” The shadow moved forward, resolving in the moonlight to Aoi’s face, held carefully blank even as his eyes were wide. “Good, you got my message! Is the Ace here?” _

_ “Yeah.” Hinata frowned. “Aoi, why are you in the palace?” _

_ “You were right,” Aoi said without pause. “Hinata, this is too big for me. Too big for all of us. I came to the palace to try to find someone I could tell. Someone I can trust.” Aoi tilted his head and the gesture seemed stiff. “But, if the Ace is here, that’s perfect! Could you get him for me? Tell him to meet me in the throne room, alright?” _

_ Hinata was still frowning. “The throne room?” _

_ “Exactly!” Aoi squeezed his shoulder and the grip didn’t let up. “Hinata, there’s something I need to do first. I’ve got to check that I wasn’t followed. Tell the Ace to meet me in fifteen minutes, okay? Can you do that?” He waited for Hinata’s slight nod.”You can come, too, if you want. I trust you.” His eyes met Hinata and the look behind them was strange, flat instead of panicked. “But, don’t tell anyone else, alright? These people have ears everywhere.” _

_ “....okay,” Hinata lied. “Aoi, are you--” _

_ The grip let up. _

_ “I’ve got to go, Hinata,” Aoi said, turning away down the corridor. “I’ll explain in a few minutes! All of it, alright?” _

_ Hinata watched Aoi disappear back into the shadows, hand still tense on the knife and wondering if he should follow him. _

_ Something was wrong. _

_ He needed Tsuki. _

_ He scaled outside the palace walls, finding the suite normally assigned to the Spades’ Jack. _

_ He picked open the window, nearly soundless and stepped inside. _

_ Only to find his back slammed against the wall and a knife held to his throat. _

_ “Ow! Tsuki,” Hinata complained. “It’s me!” _

_ “Hinata,” the knife dropped down even as the hand on his shoulder pushed him more roughly. “You idiot, why did you wake me up?” _

_ “How did you even hear me,” Hinata whined even as Tsuki strided away from him to light a candle. _

_ The irritated and entirely familiar face of Hinata’s longest companion met his own. Tsuki huffed. “Like you’re the only one who remembered Ukai’s lessons on intruders.” Then, Tsuki’s eyes narrowed. “Hinata! Why are you here? We’re at Diamonds’ Festival! Who’s watching Spades?” _

_ “I left Yachi in charge,” Hinata said. “Don’t worry, it’s--” _

_ If anything, Tsuki looked even more annoyed. “What? You got so bored that you couldn’t last a week! We’re not kids anymore, Hinata, you’re Spades’ Ace! You can’t just keep trouncing after me whenever you think it’s more interesting than--” _

_ “TSUKI!” Hinata yelled in interruption. _

_ Honestly, Hinata loved his kinda-sorta-definetly-if-you-asked-Hinata brother; but, there was no one alive that could get under his skin faster when Hinata was well and truly worked up. _

_ “This is important,” Hinata finished when it seemed like Tsuki had paused to scowl. Hinata rolled his eyes. “I didn’t come here for nothing! Really, Tsuki, how dumb do you think I am? I’m on a mission.” _

_ Tsuki scoffed. “What mission? In case you forgot, I  _ know  _ all your missions and there’s nothing that couldn’t have waited until I got back!” _

_ “A different mission,” Hinata said quietly. “Listen, I’ll tell you in the morning. I don’t have long right now.” _

_ “Why not?” Tsuki was still glaring at him but at least he seemed to be listening. _

_ “I’ve got a meeting,” Hinata answered. _

_ “With  _ who _?” _

_ “....I’m not sure,” Hinata said because the more he thought about it, the more he thought that something was definitely wrong. _

_ Tsuki narrowed his eyes. “Hinata!” _

_ “Don’t worry, I’ve got a plan,” Hinata reassured because whatever it was, it was still in the heart of Diamonds’ castle with some of the best knights that Cards had to offer guarding every door. And, beyond that, Hinata had more than a few surprises hidden up his sleeve as well. _

_ And Hinata was the Ace of Spades. He was fairly good at getting out of messy situations, especially if he knew they were coming. _

_ Some risks had to be taken. _

_ He’d still feel better if he had time to tell it all to Tsuki. _

_ “Tsuki, I’m sorry,” Hinata apologized, “I really, really don’t have time right now. It’s a long story and I’ve got to go. I just….I just wanted to see you, I guess.” _

_ Tsuki was still watching him, eyes narrowed as he assessed Hinata’s face. _

_ “You took a mission without telling me,” Tsuki asked and, for some reason, those words were the sharpest of all. _

_ Hinata looked down, trying to find words that were short enough to boil an entire month of worry and research into a single phrase. _

_ He was running out of time. _

_ “....I’ll explain in the morning,” he promised. _

_ Tsuki’s face closed off before Hinata could see anything. He pointed at the door. “Get out.” _

_ Hinata winced. “In the morning, Tsuki. I’ll tell you everything, I swear.” _

_ “Whatever.” Tsuki was already stalking back to his bed. “Just go to your stupid meeting and let me sleep.” _

_ Hinata went quietly to the door. _

_ He paused before he slipped out, casting one last look over his shoulder. _

_ “Good night, Tsuki.” _

_ There wasn’t an answer. _

_ Hinata closed the door behind him. _

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The sky was overcast, clouds thick enough to block out the sun.

The Suits were gathered on a wet riverbed that smelled like rotted fish and with mud that clung desperately to the souls of their shoes like even it was trying to escape.

It was not a place one would expect to find Hinata.

Which is the detail that Tsukishima focused on most as he looked down at the black clad body that had been dragged up to the shore and all Tsukishima could think was  _ wrong. _

Suga’s hand wavered by the mask.

If it was Hinata--no, that was wrong--if the uniform the body was wearing had the same magic as the Ace of Spades’ uniform, then only Hinata or a member of Spades own Suit would have the power to remove it.

Suga met Tsukishima’s eyes.

“Do it,” Tsukishima ordered.

Suga removed the mask, a slight spark arcing at the neck as the magic cancelled.

A sharp intake of breath ran across the Suit gathered behind him, followed by a pained whimper that Tsukishima placed as Bokuto by the soothing voice of Akaashi that echoed behind it.

Kageyama had gone still and white, hand moving before clenching back and face closing off with a shudder. 

Dispassionately, Tsukishima wondered if they should have left the rest of the Suit at the palace. It’s not as if they were particularly needed.

Suga closed his eyes. “It’s him.”

Laying unmoving on the ground was the face of Hinata Shouyou, bright orange hair plastered down on his cheeks and warm brown eyes gone cold and staring out blankly. And it  _ was  _ Hinata’s face, Tsukishima knew it down to the way the hair had just started to curl as it dried. He knew it by the faint scar a bit below his left ear where Noya and him had been sparing when they were nine and grabbed the wrong knives. He didn’t know it by the way the mouth was held, blank and expressionless in a way Hinata could never hope to be. He didn’t know it in the stillness or the flatness behind the eyes like there wasn’t anyone there, like Hinata actually was….

It was  _ wrong. _

“Well, it certainly looks like it,” Tsukishima said dryly. “I’ll give them that.”

There was a moment when everyone stared, heads jerking back from the body to stare at the Jack of Spades.

“What’s that supposed to mean,” Yaku asked cautiously.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “It’s a fake.  _ Obviously _ .”

Suga flinched back. “Tsuki--”

“It is?” Bokuto had bounced back to the front, greif being replaced by shock. “Fates, that’s creepy! Wait, how did you know?”

Tsukishima didn’t answer the question, focusing his attention on the more important details. “This is good. It means we have to be getting closer. They wouldn’t have gone to setting up….whatever this is….if they weren’t getting scared and trying to throw us off the trail.” 

Beside him, Kageyama had started to breathe again, quick shuddering breaths that were honestly distracting in the way they echoed uncomfortably against how fast Tsukishima’s heart was beating so he decided to ignore it.

He turned to Shimizu and Asahi. “Continue to search the town. We know they have to have a Mage working with them, probably fairly powerful, judging by the level of detail.That has to narrow down the suspects.”

Shimizu and Asahi both nodded, gesture looking jerky even under the masks and hesitating awkwardly at the river bank in a way that Tsukishima had rarely seen from the spies.

Asahi took a step toward him. “Um, Kei…..”

Tsukishima narrowed his eyes. “Go.”

Shimizu pulled on Asahi’s arm, the gesture somehow displaying some of the quiet spy language Tsukishima had never quite figured out. Asahi stepped back, both of them fading back into the shadows.

Tsukishima turned his gaze on Suga. The Queen of Spades was still kneeling, tears falling steadily down his cheeks as he looked down at the body, seemingly unhearing to Tsukishima’s words behind him.

“Hinata’s  _ fine _ , Suga!” Tsukishima snapped loudly, close to a growl…..and….that was probably too harsh, wasn’t it? Even for Tsukishima. He could feel it in the way several of the Suit members stepped back, a few wincing. 

Tsukishima pushed forward regardless. Suga still hadn’t moved, eyes not leaving the….the  _ imitation  _ and Tsukishima suddenly found it very, very irritating, infuriating even as the blood heated in his veins.

“Suga, what kind of magic can imitate a person,” Tsukishima demanded.

Suga’s voice was flat. “I don’t know of any.”

Suga had been the Queen of Spades, a master of magic, for over one hundred years. There was no one alive that knew more about magic than him.

“Then, we better find out,” Tsukishima said coldly.

Suga sighed, finally looking away from  _ that thing  _ and up to Tsukishima. 

He looked tired, eyes red and pained and every nerve in Tsukishima’s body wanted to flinch back instinctively at the same time that he wanted to _rage_ and _burn_ because nothing was _right,_ it was all wrong, it had to be, and…..and….

….and why was Tsukishima the only one that could see it?

The rest of the Suits were staring at them and Tsukishima’s ribs had started to hurt from how fast his heart was slamming against them and he wanted to shove all of them away, to leave him alone, because they weren’t  _ helping,  _ they were only getting in the way and why couldn’t they see that everything here was  _ wrong _ ? It was obvious!

“Kei,” Suga said simply.

“I’ll be back at the palace,  _ working, _ ” Tsukishima said, stalking away before anyone could say anything.

If everyone else was blind, then he’d find Hinata himself.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The world was going too slow and the people too fast.

Kenma couldn’t pick up everything.

He tried anyway.

“.....well, I guess,” Yaku’s eyes flickered to him--sharp, a pause, long enough to be verging on awkward, he’d been doing that more lately (oh, he was waiting, Kenma needed to say something). Kenma didn’t know what to say, what should he--

“I guess we should all head back,” Yaku finished before Kenma could form the words and the King of Diamonds felt a sharp stab of relief. “What should we do with….with….”

He looked down at the body. Bright orange hair (darker currently and flattened with the water, it looked the exact same as whenever Shoyou came in from the rain), black uniform (ties fastened in the way that Kenma had always remembered), dead eyes (and that was different at least). Still the analytical part of Kenma could only find one thing ( _ Shoyou, Shoyou, Shoyou). _

He didn’t understand what Tsukishima had seen.

….and, maybe, Tsukishima didn’t either.

“We’ll take him back to the palace,” Suga suggested quietly, finally standing. “I can do an examination, at least, just….just give me a few moments.”

“Is it…,” Lev spoke quietly, unsure in the way the Mage never got unless he was scared. Lev swallowed. “Is it really not Hinata? What Tsukishima said about it being a fake….that was true, right? Hinata’s still alive. They  _ both _ are, yeah?”

For once, no one answered--everyone looking at someone else as if expecting they could answer instead. 

Kenma watched.

Their eyes were too wide, brows pulled together. Mouths stretched tight and unmoving. Tension held in the skin under their eyes.

Still. The world was still with thoughts moving far too quickly.

The Suits were scared.

_ Terrified, _ Kenma corrected mentally,  _ they’re terrified. _

“We should go back to the castle,” Suga said. “We can meet again this evening.” His lips pulled down, brow going with them. “I’ll tell Tsukishima.”

The Suits nodded, all heading away from the riverbed. A few casting stray glances at what could have been a body before looking away just as quickly.

Suga stayed by the shore, kneeling back to close the body’s eyes.

Kenma stayed also, face blank as his eyes still took in details.

“Kenma.”

He looked up to find Lev and Yaku, still waiting on their King.

“Are you okay,” Lev asked before going pale, “I mean….”

Kenma stared at them, trying to find the words to reassure them or--in the absence of reassurance--at least words that could convey the truth.

He found nothing and it….it felt…

Yaku took his shoulder, gently guiding him back away from the river. “Come on, Kenma, we should go.”

Kenma let himself be led, only to find it didn’t matter.

Even with his Suit walking right next to him, he still felt like he was being left behind.

He couldn’t find the words.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“So, fun fact, I’ve worked in palace defense strategies for the past, oh, about fifteen years,  _ particularly  _ in the line between Cards and Hyakuzawa,” Kuroo remarked casually as they all waited in the underbrush outside the Futakuchi palace’s servant entrance. “With that, I can say that this is a  _ terrible plan _ .”

“That fact doesn’t seem very fun,” Hinata replied.

Kuroo rolled his eyes. “Fine, just a fact-fact then. We’re all going to die.”

“Well, good news for you then,” Kenji bit back brightly. “Way I hear it, most people already think you’re dead, maybe this is your chance to prove them right.”

Kuroo glared.

“Captain,” Aone said calmly.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be nice,” Kenji said, turning back to watch the gateway. “Don’t worry, I’m too pretty to die doing something this dumb. We’ll be fine. Kamasaki wouldn’t be helping us if he didn’t think we had a decent shot. All we gotta do is wait for his signal, have him sneak us up to Moniwa’s tower, and break him out.”

“And then,” Hinata asked.

Kenji smirked. “We run like the Fates themselves are after us and pray to God that Kamasaki can get us out before the entire place goes crazy.

Kuroo drug a hand over his face. “We’re dead.”

There was a short whistle, a bit too low and definitely too pitchy to be a bird unless that bird had a severe smoking problem.

Kenji sighed. “I told him not to try the bird call.”

Aone pulled at his shoulder and they all quietly made their way to the gate, trying to blend into the long shadows of the early dusk.

Kamasaki was tapping his foot nervously when they got there.

“Come on,” he said, “I’ve got everything set up on my side. The dinner rush is about to start which means everything’s going to be chaos for the next hour. The window halfway down the East Hall is busted and the guards are still too lazy to get someone to repair it. Sneak in there and I’ll meet you on the other side with the supplies, got it?”

Kuroo and Hinata both nodded. Kenji sent a lazy salute.

Kamasaki stared at him, wiping sweaty palms on his pants. “Do you really  _ have  _ to be here, Kenji? Can’t you, I don’t know, just go wait back at the bar or something where it’s safe.”

Kenjie’s smirk faded into something more serious. “I’m not letting Aone go while I sit back and  _ hide. _ Not while I’m captain.”

Kamasaki groaned. “Why do you only have to be noble when it’s a pain in my ass.” He pointed up at Aone. “Keep close to each other, alright?  _ Nothing _ , not even Moniwa’s freedom, is worth the risk if King Hotaka catches either of you here. Understand?”

Aone nodded firmly

Kuroo and Hinata exchanged a look.

“You know the King,” Kuroo asked quietly.

“Oh, please,” Kenji’s smile was too sharp to be real, “I’m a pirate extraordinaire, the King knows  _ me! _ ”

“Kenji,” Kamasaki warned.

“Go,” Kenji shoved him off. “I’ll be safe, just hurry it up before the guards do another round.”

Kamasaki sighed, trailing back to the servants’ main entrance while the rest waited in the shadows to make their way along the palace borders.

In the fading light of sunset, the palace was a sight to behold--bleached wood shining warm. This close, Hinata could even see the carvings--detailed marks made along the edges of giant squids and sea dragons worked along the lines of the castle seemingly at random and worn down with the hints of age.

Kenji caught his stare. “They’re old ships.”

“What,” Hinata asked.

“The palace walls,” Kenji explained, “it’s made from old ships, driftwood, whatever they could find basically and hold together with either hope or magic--just something to stand tall, something we could call our own.” He cleared his throat. “That’s how the Futakuchi Islands started, you know. Back three hundred years ago, the islands were a place for refugees, the ones who were sick of being dragged into Hyakuzawa and Nohebi’s wars and traded back and forth as if whoever’s flag we hoisted really mattered when the ocean storms came to shore.”

He smiled, a sad smile as much as it was fond. “The Futakuchi Islands didn’t care for kings and monarchs, not even the Fates themselves really. Kings are mercurial, you know, but you can always trust the tide.” He looked down at Hinata. “The first Futakuchi king was a pirate.”

Hinata frowned. “Really?”

Kenji nodded. “He gathered all the ships--merchants, pirates, didn’t matter--and convinced them to band together for their own. He got Cards to help us, made our first alliances, set up trade paths, markets, first communication systems between the islands. And they  _ trusted  _ him. They didn’t need destiny or Marks. They knew he was strong, knew he could lead, so they let him.” The smile faded and Kenji turned back to watch the palace. “That was a long time ago, though. Now, it just matters who wears the crown.”

Hinata thought for a moment. “I don’t believe that.”

Kenji raised a brow. “No?”

“People always care who leads them,” Hinata said. “It’s a king’s job to deserve it.”

Kenji stared down at him, frowning and almost getting ready to retort when Aone drew them up short.

The giant man nodded at a window that was indeed covered only with a thick sheet, barely wide enough for Aone to fit through.

Kuroo sighed, looking down at his crutch. “Alright, let’s get this over with.

One by one, they made it through to the other side, Aone straight up lifting Kuroo to get him through without damaging his bad leg while the man himself looked like he would rather be practically anywhere else, preferably an ocean away and in mountains still gripped by winter rather than the sunny beaches of Futakuchi.

“So, where’s this Mage’s room supposed to be,” Kuroo asked.

“Top of the North Tower,” Kenji said back. “We’ve just got to get past the main foyer.”

“That won’t be noticeable,” Kuroo muttered

Kenji’s grin was flat out cocky. “Now, Ace of Diamonds, when are you going to learn to trust my plans?”

Just then, Kamasaki appeared, hefting a carrier bag stuffed to the brim over his shoulder.

Kenji winked at Kuroo. “How do you feel about being a kitchen servant? Or is servant work too low for an Ace?”

Kuroo and Hinata exchanged a look and Hinata almost,  _ almost  _ laughed out loud.

“I think I’ll be fine,” Kuroo said as Kamasaki rummaged in the bag, dragging out serving platters with covers and shoving them in their hands.

Hinata smiled slightly as he fell into the familiar role of palace servant. 

Kenji looked a bit put out at the lack of reaction, hefting his own tray haphazardly.

“You’re holding it wrong,” Kamasaki accused.

“It’s a tray,” Kenji complained, “how can you hold it wrong?”

“Like  _ that _ .” Kamasaki rolled his eyes, exchanging the tray for his own full pitcher. “Here, take this instead. Least when you hold a pitcher wrong, you notice quick.”

Kenji’s frown went all the way into a pout.

“Pitcher holder too low for a pirate,” Kuroo snarked back.

Kenji huffed. “Shut up.”

“Come on,” Kamasaki gestured for them to follow.

As they trailed behind, the halls quickly started filling around them, servants bustling from one wing to the other, all with arms loaded either bringing food off or taking back empty platters to dump in the kitchen. 

In the center of it all stood a woman with sharp eyes and a scroll, standing in the center and monitoring the chaos.

“Shit,” Kamasaki swore, “She wasn’t supposed to be here.”

“”Who is she,” Hinata asked.

“Palace supervisor,” Kamasaki grumbled. “She knows  _ everyone  _ that works here and who  _ doesn’t. _ ”

“And you didn’t think to mention that until now,” Kenji said, voice raising high at the end.

“I thought she was off today!” He pushed them forward. “Just go! I’ll distract her and meet you back up there.”

He pushed them off, healing to the center of the foyer and leaving them to wander at the edges of the mess.

They stuck by the walls, ducking their heads and trying desperately to avoid notice as they made it to the stairwell. Hinata kept watch as they did, noticing the way that Kenji’s back stayed tense.

They made it to the stairs, up to the next floor and Kenji let out a sigh.

“Alright, hard part over,” he noticed the look Kuroo gave him, “fine, the first hard part over. Come on, the stairs to the North Tower should be over--”

“Excuse me! Servant!”

Kenji froze, jaw going slack.

Beside him, Aone’s hand immediately went for his knife.

An older man in fine clothes, hair long gone white even as the lines on his face were heavy around a kind smile. He motioned to the group. “Is that some water you have with you? Excellent! Would you mind pouring me a new glass?”

Kenji was still motionless.

Kuroo elbowed him.

Kenji didn’t move.

The old man had started to frown. “Excuse me?”

“Captain,” Aone’s voice lilted up in a question, hand readied at where his knife was hidden.

Kenji came back to live with a start, shaking his head in a sharp single movement. 

“No,” he muttered to Aone, “I’ll handle it.”

He walked to the old man, keeping his eyes trained up on the ground even as the pitcher shook slightly before Kenji could steady his hands.

“Ah, thank you.” The old man held up his goblet.

Kenji lifted his face, just enough to see where he was pouring.

The old man jerked back, the goblet spilling to the ground.

Everything stopped, the movement held on a thin sheet of ice.

Aone slid the knife out, only to be cut off with a sudden laugh.

“Sorry, sorry, old hands.” The old man dabbed the water off his doublet. “I’ll handle that. Forgive me,” the old man tilted his head, “for a second you reminded me of someone familiar.”

Kenji didn’t say anything and Aone took a step forward before Kuroo’s hand caught him.

The old man shook his head, laughing lightly. “Not like that particular means anything. At my age, I’m afraid  _ everything  _ trips into familiarity in one way or another.” He waved a hand. “Excuse my dottering mind, I think it’s better served if I return back to my study. Have a nice night, young man.”

And, with that, the man continued off back down the hall, forgetting his spilled goblet that Hinata hurried forward to pick up off the ground.

He disappeared around the corner and Kenji took in a shuddering breath.

“Who was that,” Kuroo asked.

“Otsuka Tadao,” Aone said, coming to rest at Kenji’s side. “The King’s Royal Advisor.”

“He was the old king’s advisor, too,” Kenji’s eyes were stuck on the empty hallway, “before he betrayed him for the king’s brother.” He turned, movements wooden. “We don’t have time for this. Hurry it up, we gotta get Moniwa out before the dinner shift ends.”

It was either luck or good planning that the rest of the way to the tower stairs was practically abandoned, even the servants slowly thinning away as they got further to the stairs.

The North Tower itself was something of old opulence--fine tapestries and beautiful sculptures displayed like an exhibit rather than an area people were used to passing through. The higher they went, the smell of must worsened with dust notes gathering in the dying light.

Kenji’s brow was heavy. “Kamasaki was right, this isn’t a suite, it’s a  _ prison _ .” He all but spat out the last word.

“Been wondering that, actually,” Kuroo mused.”Why does the King keep Futakuchi’s best Mage up in a Tower where no one can even use the magic, seems like a waste whatever way you look at it.”

Kenji snorted. “Ah, yes, but that’s the thing with dear old Hotaka,” his smile was as wry as it was unamused, “he loves owning amazing things because it means no one else can have them. He doesn’t particular care what those amazing things actually do, much less what the  _ things _ could  _ want _ .”

Hinata shivered, thinking of Suga, of Lev, of Akaashi, and Mad Dog and how none of them he could ever imagine being contained by the word  _ prison _ . It felt viscerally wrong. “That’s….”

“Makes you wonder who the real thief is, doesn’t it,” Kenji said flatly.

They reached the top of the stairs, only to find an ornate door sealed tight with a heavy padlock.

“It’s a Mage seal,” Kenji said, “warded against magic but, very luckily for us, we’re not planning on using magic, are we?” His face widened into a grin and he pointed to Aone. “Hit it!”

Hinata frowned. “Wait, what are--”

Aone lifted his sword high and swung it down hard, the pommel cracking against the metal of the lock.

_ CLACK! _

The lock remained unmoved.

“Huh.” Kenji stared at it. “Alright, maybe again.”

Aone swung his sword down again, throwing his shoulder into it.

_ CLACK! _

The lock didn’t even have a dent in it.

Aone and Kenji stared at each other.

“It didn’t work,” Kenji said, frowning in contemplation.

“Why did you think it would?” Kuroo gaped at them. “It’s a  _ metal lock _ ?! Why did you think  _ hitting  _ it would work?”

Aone and Kenji exchanged a look, Kenji’s expression going sheepish and light, barely there spots of red appearing at the tips of Aone’s ears.

“Well, it works in the books,” Kenji muttered, trying to sound logical.

“Are you kidding me?!”

“Fine, then, do you have a better idea,” Kenji huffed back.

“Pick the lock,” Kuroo demanded, gesturing wildly with his crutch.

“Um,” Kenji looked up at Aone, who looked back blankly at him, “right pick the lock….well the thing is….”

“You don’t know how to pick locks,” Kuroo finished flatly. 

“But, you’re  _ pirates _ ,” Hinata shouted incredulously.

“Yeah, who steal from rich merchant ships,” Kenji waved a hand, “it’s not like they put  _ bread  _ under padlocks! And for gold….well, it’s not like a chest can’t be broken apart with an ax!”

“You’re the worst pirate I’ve ever met,” Kuroo groaned.

“I’m the  _ only  _ pirate you’ve ever met, thank you!” Kenji glared. “And the only one who’s helping you so, hey, why don’t  _ you  _ try picking the lock?”

“Why would I know how to pick a lock?” Kuroo looked incredulous. “I’m an Ace!”

“Well, then….”

The three men all stared at each other, lock still not anywhere closer to opening.

It was fairly rare that Hinata felt anywhere close to actual exasperation--years growing up with Tsuki had brought his threshold up to nearly inhuman levels of maintaining an upbeat attitude at all times...if partly to see how it got under Tsuki’s skin.

But, currently, Hinata had the very, very strong urge to groan.

He really missed Tsuki.

“Unbelievable.” Hinata dropped to his knees in front of the door and brought out his lockpick set. 

Kenji blinked.  _ “You  _ know how to pick locks?”

“Shh,” Hinata said even though he was pretty sure he could do this in his sleep.

The thing about locks specifically warded against magic is that they were way too preoccupied with how to stop Mages and way  _ less  _ focused on how to stop everyone else.

Hinata heard a faint click and the roll of the tumbler and the lock snapped open in five seconds flat.

“There we go,” Hinata said, opening the door without waiting for further conversation.

Kenji shook himself out of his stare, approaching the door.

Inside was a reasonable size suite, clearly well made even if--under the weight of a lock--everything seemed a little too closed in.

“Oi, Moniwa,” Kenji called out, “Come on, it’s a jail break!”

A young man with curly black hair skidded into view before his eyes landed on Kenji and his jaw dropped.

Kenji winced. “NO, WAIT, MONI--”

“Prince Kenji,” the man said, “what are you doing here?”

“Fuck,” Keji swore, “fuck, fuck,  _ fuck _ .” He pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing to Aone. “And it was going so well.”

Aone didn’t look particularly distrubed if anything he looked pleased.

“Oh, shut up,” Kenji groaned.

“Prince?!” Kuroo shouted, looking at Kenji. “Did he say  _ Prince _ Kenji?!”

Hinata stared. “ _ Fates,  _ you’re the Prince of Futakuchi, aren’t you? Former King Hironori’s son.” He blinked. “Wait, aren’t you supposed to be dead?”

“Okay, first,  _ rude _ .” Kenji held up a finger, “and, second, why don’t we all just cool it with the whole prince stuff at least until we--”

“Why are you here?” Moniwa grabbed at his shirt, eyes wide and darting around the hall. “Kenji, if King Hotaka finds you here, he’ll kill you! He’ll  _ kill  _ you, do you understand?”

“I know.” Kenji groaned. “Listen, it’s a long story, the important part is we’re getting you out of here so--”

“I’m not worth this,” Moniwa insisted. 

“Yeah, well, too bad.” Kenji jerked his thumb at Kuroo. “Because Aone and I here have got a fricking Ace of Cards stuck on our ship! And apparently you’re the only one who can get him back home! So, pack up and come on!”

Moniwa pulled up short, staring at Kuroo. “An Ace of Cards?”

“Diamonds,” Kuroo muttered, obligingly pulling up his sleeve. “And he’s right, we need to hurry.”

“Then, who are you,” Moniwa turned to Hinata.

Hinata smiled sweetly. “No one important.”

“Moniwa,  _ go _ ,” Kenji ordered. “Now!”

Moniwa nodded, still looking half between shock and like he wanted to start yelling before he turned back, snapping his fingers as books and random pieces flew through the room and into a bag before the bag tightly folded itself up and shrunk into the size of a letter where Moniwa quickly put it into his pocket.

Kuroo sighed. “I  _ missed _ Mages.”

“Kamasaki will meet us downstairs,” Kenji ushered Moniwa out, passing him a hood to pull over his face.

“Kamasaki’s helping?” Moniwa jerked his head up. “Kenji, are you….is this a rebellion?”

_ “No, _ ” Kenji said adamantly.

Aone shrugged and Moniwa’s expression brightened.

“No.” Kenji glared heatedly before sighing. He grumbled under his breath. “It’s just a mess.”

Moniwa’s shoulders slumped and Kenji quickly looked away, gritting his teeth. “We need to be quick, the dinner rush is should be in a lull now, let’s get out before anyone’s there to recognize Moniwa”

Everyone nodded, running down the stairs as fast as they could without suspicion. Hinata took the back, keeping at eye out for anyone that seemed to be keeping an eye on them.

So far, it looked like they might actually make it out of this thing safe.

Which is why it was particularly surprising when an arm shot from behind to coil around his neck, the other hand coming up to muffle his shout.

He barely got a hand on his knife before he was dragged hard into the darkness. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

There was something wrong about the Diamond’s palace.

It was too cold.

Cold that Tsukishima had never recognized before, like pins and needles and  _ absence  _ expanding out from under his own skin, clinging thick inside his ribs and freezing all that remained. And his chest  _ hurt,  _ every breath an act of effort and….

….it made it very hard to focus on work….and Tsukishima needed to work right now….Hinata needed him to.

But, Diamonds was too fucking  _ cold _ .

They were staring at him and Tsukishima could feel it.

He was a spymaster, an expert at reading people, he could tell the way the rest of the Suits had started watching him, drifting in and out of his office just to “check in” with short, staggered conversation before Tsukishima pointedly told them to leave.

He didn’t have time for this.

He didn’t have time for meetings or menial reassurances or whatever Suga was focusing on with that imitation of a body….Tsukishima just….

Tsukishima just wanted to be  _ alone…. _ so, that maybe he could focus and work and find a way to deal with the Fates cursed cold.

Or maybe he didn’t have to be alone….maybe just one--

“Kei,” Suga called.

Tsukishima sighed. “Fine. I’m ready.”

The meeting of the Suits was as different from the previous as rain was to a storm. Where the previous meeting was felt with the downpour of early grief, of shock and confusion, and--finally--of fragile hope. This one held the static of uncertainty, of  _ doubt,  _ and tension held tight like the crack of lightning kept taught and waiting for the roar of thunder.

“The people…..,” Akaashi coughed uncomfortably, “the people are getting nervous. They’ve  _ barely  _ seen any of us and the Festival’s about to come to end.”

“The rumors have gotten worse,” Yaku admitted quietly. “They’re saying that Diamonds’ Ace went rouge and killed Spades’ Ace….they’re asking if it’ll mean war.”

“So...so we just tell them ‘no’, right?” Lev looked around the table, eyes dull and red rimmed. “That’ll work, yeah? Even if….even if Kuroo and Hinata are….,” Lev swallowed and Tsukishima’s hand tensed on the glass he’d just poured, “as long as we tell them it’ll be okay then it will be.”

Oikawa sighed. “It’s not that simple. War is  _ never  _ that simple, it’s not just the Suits decision. It’s the people.” He flexed his hand with the red heart on it. “When looking at Spades, their Ace is as much a  _ symbol  _ as it is a person. Even more than the rest of the Suits with how the anonymity makes him feel almost like a folk legend.” Oikawa shook his head. “They won’t see it as a matter between just the Suits, they’ll see it as Diamonds attacking Spades’ core…..like burning Hearts’ docks or destroying Clubs’ mines.” He looked up at the table. “Even if we say there’s no war, even if we say everything’s  _ fine,  _ the people won’t feel that way. There’ll be riots, revolts, the entire relationship between the kingdoms would be attacked.  _ Everyone _ will choose a side.”

Suga nodded. “From a localized standpoint, it might be even worse. Hinata’s not like the previous Aces of Spades--we didn’t  _ want  _ him to be. The others kept to themselves, they didn’t bother keeping other identities. Hinata….,” Suga’s smile was wistful as it was so very heartbreaking, “the whole capital knows him, they love him. When they find out he was the Ace….”

“They won’t find out,” Tsukishima broke in.

Suga jerked his head up. “It’s tradition. Kei, you don’t want to--

“Maybe that’s a point,” Konoha offered, “delay confirmation gives us more time to--”

“A known spy is a dead spy,” Tsukishima interrupted bluntly, repeating the refrain Takeda and Ukai had drilled into their heads every day for years.

“Tsukishima--Kei,” Suga’s voice was tired in its grief even as it was every ounce of a leader for over a century, “ _ not now.  _ Enough, not now. Please, not right now.”

“He’s alive,” Tsukishima gritted out regardless. “We can’t reveal Hinata’s identity while he’s still alive, the risk--the--,” it was too cold and Tsukishima’s hand bit into the detail of the glass in an effort to find clarity, “a known spy is a dead spy.”

“We can’t….,” Yaku stood up, “we can’t keep acting like they’re alive without confirmation. We need a plan. We need….,” He looked to his King, “Kenma?”

There was only quiet.

Kenma shifted in the tension, words slow to come and painfully measured. “Kuroo would have known the fallout--Cards’ defenses, the relationship between Spades and Diamonds. He would have understood this as the consequence.”

Iwaizumi blinked, surprise coloring his words. “Wait? Are you saying it might’ve been an accident….or that….that the fallout was  _ planned _ ?”

Kenma frowned, the gesture minute. “Neither.”

“Then,” Yaku scrubbed a hand through his hair, “Kenma, what do you mean?”

“Kuroo would’ve  _ understood _ ,” Kenma emphasized before a small shake of his head. “This isn’t like him.”

There was silence again.

“Kenma,” Bokuto broke the stillness, “I think….I mean, yeah, none of us thought Kuroo would kill Hinata….that’s...that’s  _ one  _ of the things that’s so weird about it, right?”

Kenma huffed in restrained frustration. “I mean Kuroo  _ wouldn’t--- _ ”

“We don’t have time for this,” Tsukishima interrupted. “It doesn’t  _ matter _ what happened then! We don’t have the information. We need to focus on  _ now.  _ We need to find Hinata and--”

“Kei,” Suga’s hand slammed down on the table, the wind against the castle suddenly coming to an abrupt standstill. “He’s  _ dead _ !”

“He’s not!” Tsukishima was already shaking his head. “Why won’t you listen to me! Hinata’s  _ not dead,  _ he’s--”

Why wasn’t anyone  _ understanding _ ?

“We have a body, Tsukishima,” Suga collapsed back in his chair, rubbing a hand down his face. “I checked the hair, the blood. It’s a match, just like the blood on the throne room floor. Just like  _ everything _ ’s been a match. Please, Kei, you need to at least consider--”

Why was the palace so fucking  _ freezing _ ?

“I AM!” Tsukishima yelled. “I AM CONSIDERING! IT’S HINATA, OKAY?! IT’S HINATA! SO HE CAN’T BE--,”  _ too cold,  _ “HE CAN’T--”

“Why?” Suga’s eyes bored in and Tsuki felt it like frost to his chest and he was  _ ice,  _ “Just tell me. Just give me one reason. Why can’t Hinata be dead?”

“BECAUSE IT’S  _ HINATA! _ ” Tsukishima exploded. “BECAUSE IT’S HINATA AND HINATA DOESN’T JUST  _ DIE!  _ NOT LIKE THIS! NOT WITHOUT A WARNING, NOT WHEN I DIDN’T GET TO SAY ANYTHING! I WON’T LET HIM DIE!”

_ Crack! _

Suga pulled back, blinking with wide eyes.

Around them, the table had come to a standstill, all staring at Tsukishima, and it took a second for him to realize why.

The goblet had cracked apart in his hand, glass cutting into his hand and dripping down on the table with steady drops of blood.

Tsukishima couldn’t feel it over the cold.

He turned away, dropping the broken fragments and wrapping his hand in his sleeve.

“I’m going back to work,” he said simply, “ _ don’t  _ bother me.”

No one said a word as the door shut behind him.

Tsukishima was freezing and his chest ached and he felt….

For once, he felt entirely alone.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The Suit watched the closed door, no one daring to speak.

Kageyama was the first to move, chair scraping against the stone.

“Kageyama,” Suga said quietly.

“Someone needs to believe him.” Kageyama’s skin was chalk white. “Even if...even if,” he swallowed, “even if Tsukishima’s wrong and Hinata really is dead.  _ Someone  _ needs to stay on Tsukishima’s side.” Kageyama cleared his throat. “He needs someone to listen and I….,” he looked up, “I’m not going to let go until he does. Don’t ask me to, Suga. Please.”

Suga nodded. “I understand.”

Kageyama took in a breath, heading to the door.

Suga called after him. “Check in with Asahi and Shimizu, would you? Tell them what happened.”

Kageyama nodded in acquiescence, leaving the chamber.

Of the remaining Suit, there was silence as everyone tried to figure out what to say next.

Akaashi stood, walking to the broken glass and snapping until the glass fell apart into fine sand, drying the few drops of blood, before the Mage scattered it out to the wind outside the palace.

“Forgive me for saying this,” Akaashi said quietly, “but I...I didn’t expect Tsukishima to be this affected.” He winced. “I’m sorry, that’s rude, I just mean--”

Mad Dog grunted in agreement, saving Akaashi from finding the words. 

“Yeah, um,” Bokuto broke in, “I mean Hinata and Tsukishima work together, right? With all the Ace of Spades stuff. So, I guess it makes sense that they’re kind of close but….” He fumbled helplessly at where the broken glass had been.

“I expected Kageyama,” Yaku admitted. “Honestly, he’s handling it better than I thought. It’s just normally Tsukishima’s so--”

“Cold!” Lev blurted out. “Sure, it’s kind of badass even if he can be like…. _ really, really _ annoying about it, sometimes! But, it’s Tsukishima, you know? So, he’s  _ always  _ so cold about it.”

Iwaizumi grimaced. “Maybe level headed’s the more, ah, polite way to put it.”

Oikawa just looked curious, eyes flickering between the table and Suga.

Suga shook his head, his next words careful. “I should have expected this. I thought having the other spies here might help him come to terms better. I didn’t,” he bit his lip, the next words soft, “I didn’t expect the body.” He sighed, finally standing. “Hinata and Tsukishima were always close, it’s more than just working together. Tsukishima’s never had to be Jack without Hinata before, he never let himself be trained to….I don’t….I don’t think he ever considered it.”

“What do you mean,” Konoha asked.

“They were raised together,” Suga explained quietly. “Since they were seven. Hinata….they’re the closest they have to a brother. They think of each other like that, I believe, even if Kei wouldn’t admit to it.”

Iwaizumi blinked. “They don’t mention it. Either of them.”

Suga tapped the faint mark on the table from the broken glass. “They wouldn’t. We tried to establish more public distance between the two after Tsukishima Claimed his title--it made sense with Hinata acting a servant.”

“I’m sorry and I mean that, truly.” Oikawa was frowning, finally leaning forward. “But, what are we going to do now? We still need a plan for what we’re going to tell the people and our spymaster’s in fairly obvious denial. We  _ need _ him--especially if any idea to find out what  _ actually _ happened has a chance of working.”

“I know.” Suga nodded. “I already sent for someone a few days ago. They should be here soon.”

“Who is it,” Yaku asked.

Suga smiled faintly. “The only one I believe Tsukishima will still listen to.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The moment he was pulled into the shadows, Hinata flipped the knife in his hand and jabbed up--roughly at the place where his attacker’s face should be.

The hand on his arm shifted immediately, twirling him in a spin--that was decidedly  _ not  _ any kind of offensive move Hinata had ever seen--before slamming him back into the wall.

There was a snicker from the dark. “Careful, you could take someone’s eye out like that,  _ hmmmm? _ ”

Hinata stopped.

Because Hinata  _ knew  _ that voice--even if he had only heard it once.

Fuck.

Hinata’s eyes adjusted to the dark and he found he’d guessed correctly.

Tendou, the Fate of Chaos--an avatar of the ancient magic that ruled Cards and, coincidentally, also the guy that had dropped a warehouse on top of Hinata last time he’d seen him--grinned back at him.

“Hey, Short Stuff,” Tendou skipped back from him, leaning unballanced on the back of his heels. He crooked a finger at Hinata. “Come on, let’s go on an adventure.”

Hinata tried valiantly to sort out one question from thousands. “Wha--Why are you in Futakuchi?”

“I’m on vacation,” Tendou said brightly.

Hinata blinked. “You take vacations?”

The Fate snorted. “Kid, I’m a absurdly powerful force of primordial nature, I think I can do whatever I want.” He slapped his thighs like calling a dog. “Now, come on! Hurry it up! Keep being so  _ slow  _ and I might get bored!”

Hinata lived in abject terror of the words  _ Chaos  _ and  _ bored _ so he immediately took off after Tendou and down the hall. “Where are we going?”

“Surprise!”

Hinata didn’t sigh. “Why are we going there?”

“Because,” Tendou winked. “I found something  _ interesting _ .”

Hinata’s stomach dropped around the vicinity of his knees.

_ Fates. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha....so, yeah, another cliffhanger; but, arguably a nicer one this time? As always, thank you so much for all of your support; it means so much to hear that people are enjoying this series!
> 
> Next Chapter Post Date: Aug. 22-23  
> Also, next chapter is finally the last of the flashbacks from the winter festival or, in other words, .....what the heck between Kuroo and Hinata right before the start of this story?
> 
> Always feel free to find me on Tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	6. Chapter 6

_ The Night of Diamonds Winter Festival _

_ Hinata was right. _

_ The night outside had become a storm. _

_ A mix of ice and freezing rain battered against the windows, cursing any unlucky soul with the misfortune to be trapped out there. _

_ In the deep night that echoed around the Diamonds castle, it felt like the end of the world, like balancing on the edge of the map so close to falling...falling….falling…. _

_ Hinata wasn’t a particularly superstitious person. Maybe it came with being thought of as a nightmare himself. _

_ But, he also wasn’t Hinata the Ace right now, the worn fabric of his servant shift hanging around his arms and--hopefully if Hinata was right--giving him an edge of surprise that he had a feeling he might need. _

_ Because whoever was waiting for him in the throne room, he had a feeling it wasn’t just Aoi. _

_ Something was wrong and Hinata could  _ feel  _ it down to his bones. _

_ That was alright, though. Hinata’s job was fixing what was wrong, working in the night while everyone else got to stay safe in their beds. He wouldn’t quit now just because the path ahead had more questions than answers.  _

_ What kind of Ace would he be if he did? _

_ The throne room was empty when he got there, glass panes shaking under the weight of the storm. _

_ “Aoi?” Hinata whispered. “I couldn’t find the Ace in time, are you….” _

_ There was something laying in the shadows beside the thrones, a large lump that Hinata recognized on instinct before his brain had even processed. _

_ He approached it anyway just to make sure, a knife hidden right in his sleeve. _

_ He turned the body over and sighed when familiar dead eyes stared up at him. _

_ “Ah, Aoi,” he said quietly, “you really did get in over your head this time, didn’t you?” He closed the eyes with gentle movements. “Sorry I couldn’t keep you safe.” _

_ “He didn’t have to die,” a new voice spoke up, sounding soft and regretful. “I tried to talk them out of it, I promise.” _

_ Hinata’s back went straight, turning slowly to find a man faintly outlined in the light of the window, a hooded figure right beside him with a hand on his sword. _

_ Hinata didn’t particularly care about the hooded man right now, all he could see was a familiar nose on top of a tall, skinny frame, staring at him with the same shaped eyes that Hinata had known for what felt like forever….even if the expression behind them was so strikingly different that it struck out at Hinata the same way as an arrow. _

_ Tsukishima Akiteru stood in front of him with the saddest eyes Hinata had ever seen. _

_ “I’m sorry about this, too,” Akiteru continued, sounding absolutely miserable. “I know you don’t have any reason to believe me; but, I really, really didn’t want it to be you. Even if it was just for Kei’s sake.” _

_ Hinata blinked, slipping on a mask of confusion as easy as breathing. “What are you talking about? Who are you? Either of you?” _

_ Akiteru’s smile was a pitiful thing. “I think you know exactly who I am. I know who you are, too, Ace of Spades--Hinata Shouyou.” _

_ Hinata’s heart was beating faster. “I’m not--” _

_ Akiteru held up a hand to forestall him. “You don’t have to do that. You do a really good job hiding it, trust me. I don’t think  _ anyone _ would think to watch a servant.” His smile went wry. “But, I wasn’t watching for you. I was watching my brother….and I know Kei...he doesn’t trust just anyone.” _

_ Hinata dropped the niceties, act of nervousness rolling away into steadiness and a frown. _

_ Fine. There were questions Hinata wanted to ask, too. _

_ “I don’t understand why you’re doing this,” Hinata demanded of Akiteru. “You’re his family, his  _ brother _.” He glared, finally letting the indignant anger that had been boiling for a month reach the surface as he gripped his hands into fists. “And you’re working with the Hawks to destroy Cards! To destroy  _ everything  _ Tsuki cares about, that he works to protect!” _

_ Hinata stepped forward, starring as far into Akiteru’s eyes as he could and putting every ounce of power he had behind them until he could finally see Akiteru step back with a flinch. _

_ “Don’t you dare _ pretend _ like you know Tsuki if you’re doing  _ this,”  _ Hinata said, quiet like the sound of a knife slipping through ribs. “Don’t pretend you care about him. Not when you’re doing something like this.” _

_ “I’m doing this because I care about him,” Akiteru shouted back. The hooded figure hadn’t even moved. _

_ “You don’t,” Hinata said flatly. _

_ “You wouldn’t understand!” Akiteru was shaking his head, eyes wide and hair in disarray. “You don’t understand anything! How could you? You’re part of it! I’m trying to give Kei his freedom back!” _

_ Hinata blinked. “What do you mean?” _

_ Akiteru froze suddenly and, then his face fell, back to the look of devastation. _

_ “It doesn’t matter,” Akiteru whispered. “I’m sorry but you’ll be dead before you could understand. They needed to choose one of the Suits and….I wasn’t going to let it be Kei.” He looked up. “And you already knew too much.” _

_ Hinata already had two knives in his hands. “I’ve killed Mages before. Don’t be too sure I’ll die.” _

_ Akiteru smiled. “I’m not the one you’ll be fighting.” _

_ Then, he gripped a wooden stick, woven together with hair and things too small to be seen. And his eyes were washed out in blood red.  _ “Kill the Ace of Spades.”

_ The hooded figure struck out like a viper and Hinata barely dodged to the side before the sword was swung up again, knocking back the hood. _

_ Hinata froze. “Kuroo?” _

_ The sword didn’t even pause in its swing and Hinata’s knives were an inch too late to the block, feet unsteady as the force knocked him to the side, hitting his ribs against the throne. _

_ Hinata hissed, hoping the ribs were bruised and not broken even as he rolled aside from Kuroo’s next swing. _

_ “What are--,” Hinata gasped out and Kuroo looked down at him with blank eyes.  _

_ Hinata slid back a second behind the sword as it clipped at his side, leaving a trail of blood on the floor. “KUROO! STOP! What are you doing?” _

_ Kuroo’s only response was another swing and Hinata rolled to his feet, knocking it to the side with his knife even as he backed away for the next hit. _

_ “He can’t hear you.” Akiteru was already moving back to the shadows. “He doesn’t even understand what’s going on.” _

_ Hinata ducked under the next swing, only to dodge as it came back on the return. _

_ The next swing came from above and Hinata-- _

_ “Sorry.”  _

_ Hinata kicked out and aimed, wincing at the pop as Kuroo’s knee dislocated. _

_ Kuroo didn’t even react, moving forward even as the knee buckled against him as he swung the sword. _

_ “What?” Hinata stared, the pieces slowly clicking together as the answer came from history books and horror stories rather than anything Hinata had ever been trained for. _

_ Bloodmagic.  _

_ Akiteru was using bloodmagic. _

_ Kuroo was being controlled by bloodmagic and ordered to kill Hinata. _

_ And Hinata was just beginning to realize how entirely fucked he might be. _

_ The puppet-like figure of Kuroo in front of him had clearly adjusted to the weight on his other knee, even if the pain should have put down a normal person….if he could even feel it like this. _

_ How do you stop bloodmagic? _

_ Hinata ducked his head up, seeing the slim figure of Akiteru hiding in the shadows. _

_ Sorry, Tsuki. _

_ He spun the knife in his hand and threw it into the darkness just as Kuroo’s sword sliced into his shoulder, throwing off the aim. _

_ He heard Akiteru’s hissed breath and, for a second, the fog behind Kuroo’s eyes cleared, sword hesitating as the Ace blinked out around him. _

_ “Hinata,” he said in confusion before his face twisted, hand going to his knee. “Fuck, what--” _

_ And, then, his face went blank. _

“Protect me and kill him,”  _ Akiteru ordered from the shadows, stepping forward as he held the talisman even as his cloak was bandaged around a bleeding arm, keeping the blood from falling. _

_ Kuroo dove forward and Hinata moved, aiming another knife at Akiteru only to have Kuroo knock it out of the air with his sword, moving to aim back at Hinata’s neck. _

_ Hinata dodged back and ducked, grabbing at the knives in his shoes even as he frantically tried to remember how many knives he had left that he could grab in the middle of a fight. _

_ Kuroo was still moving ahead and Hinata moved to dodge the sword, only to have Kuroo shoulder slam into his already injured ribs, punching the air out of Hinata’s lungs. _

_ “Kuroo….,” Hinata coughed into the floor, not surprised when it came back with blood. “.....Kuroo, I really, really don’t want to have to kill you. Please…” _

“Do whatever it takes, _ ” Akiteru ordered softly from the shadows. _

_ Kuroo slammed his body up, knocking Hinata’s back into the window hard even as he raised his sword and aimed at Hinata’s chest. _

_ Akiteru’s gaze was still fixed on Hinata. “I’m sorry. I’ll keep Kei safe. I promise, I--” _

_ A scream interrupted them all and Hinata jerked his head to see Eshima, one of Diamonds palace staff, eyes fixed on Hinata just as Kuroo charged forward. _

_ The last thing he saw was Akiteru disappear with Aoi’s body into the darkness just as Kuroo’s eyes went clear and the sword moved, too late to stop, only enough to move it to muscle instead of anything vital. _

_ Hinata felt the sword pierce just below his shoulder at the same time the window glass broke behind him and, then, he was falling-Kuroo’s body pulled up right against him with the momentum. _

_ He was in free fall. _

_ They were falling off the Spires of Diamonds! _

_ Hinata moved on instinct, calling on his Ace Power as everything seemed to slow _

_ Think! What was around, what could slow down? _

_ The ledge! _

_ There was a ledge under and Hinata couldn’t stop them but-- _

_ Hinata tried to jerk them to the side, backs hitting against the stone of the castle but at least slowing the momentum, and adjusting their bodies to-- _

_ The stone of the ledge hit Hinata’s side, dislocating the shoulder and beside him Hinata heard a crack that had to be broken bone. _

_ Hinata...Hinata was fading, the world around him getting darker and darker either from a concussion or the blood loss still flowing freely from the wound in his chest. But, he needed to… _

_ He sat up, ignoring the pain, to hit weakly at Kuroo. _

_ Please be alive, please, please be alive…. _

_ Kuroo didn’t move but Hinata--just barely--could see the movement of his chest. _

_ Fates… _

_ The darkness was getting closer and Hinata couldn’t even hear the storm that echoed around him. There was something, something… _

_ Two injured Aces….no one coming to help, not soon enough…and Hinata knew that if Akiteru was here, he probably wouldn’t be alone….that meant danger and that…..and Hinata couldn’t stop them….that was… _

_ Hinata had a very, very stupid idea. One that was just as likely to kill them as save them. _

_ He stumbled with his good hand for a fold just inside his pants leg. _

_ A last resort, something Asahi had made with Suga’s help and both told them all to never, ever use unless….unless…. _

_ Hinata kind of thought he was out of “unless” and there was only so long the Ace’s power could keep him awake. _

_ So, don’t be awake. Don’t be  _ alive…. _ or at least don’t look like it. _

_ He forced the pill into Kuroo’s throat, massaging it until he swallowed before taking the second one. _

_ And, then, Hinata fell back, feeling his heart rate slow, his breathing weaken, the blackness getting closer. _

_ Not dead--Hinata really, really hoped neither of them would be dead before they got the chance to wake up--but hopefully enough to seem that way. _

_ People don’t kill dead men. _

_ The last sound Hinata heard before the darkness finally closed in around him was the sound of footsteps. _

_ “Fuck,” a man swore, “You were supposed to leave the Diamonds’ one alive! We only need one--” _

_ Hinata’s world went quiet, drifting away under the weight of a storm. _

  
  
  
  
  
  


_ \------- _

Hinata had regrets.

“Where are we going,” Hinata tried again, hanging with one arm off a rope that was shoved down some warped part metal, part stone structure. All of which had been welded into the strange maverick that was the building structure of the Futakuchi palace.

From above, Tendou reached a long, lanky arm back to bop him on the nose. “It’s a  _ surpriseeeeee!  _ Keep asking and I’m going to think you don’t  _ like  _ surprises, Little Ace!”

“I mean….,” Hinata fought the urge to hack up half a lung as another pile of debris and soot was kicked back down at him, “I was kinda in the middle of something!”

“What? The escape-breakout thing?” Tendou scoffed. “ _ Boring.  _ Prison breakouts are soooooo much less exciting once you actually break them out, don’t you think? Then, it’s all just running and maybe even a death or two. Ugh, I’m already falling asleep.”

_ Fates are not human.  _ Hinata reminded himself of this for the twelfth time in the past ten minutes.  _ Fates are not human.  _ He repeated as half of his side ached from pulling himself up one handed as the other side still had a freaking stab wound through it, not to mention a recent dislocation. _ He’s a being of magic and, well, chaos that does not have the same logic we do. _

He still felt like the Fate was messing with him.

A thought struck him and quite suddenly Hinata’s heart felt like it was beating out of his chest. “You’re a Fate!”

Tendou squinted down at him. “Did you hit your head?”

“You’re a Fate,” Hinata repeated. “You have  _ magic,  _ a lot of magic! Can’t you just,” he wiggled his fingers, “like wave your hand or something and move people places.”

“Sure,” Tendou said casually.

Hinata brightened. “Then, you can get us back to Diamonds!”

“Nope!” Tendou grinned.

Hinata stared back at him, face falling.  _ “Why?” _

“Almost all my magic’s tied to  _ Cards, _ ” Tendou emphasized. “We’re not in  _ Cards,  _ now are we? Which means I’m only as powerful as say….oh, I don’t know like three or four full Mages right now. I don’t know, you humans are all so painfully mortal. Don’t know how you live like that really.”

Hinata’s mouth dropped. “Then, why did you leave Cards?!”

“I told you! I’m on  _ vacation!”  _ Tendou beamed with too many teeth. “Plus, two of our Aces magically disappeared over night! What? You think ‘Toshi and I were just going to  _ not  _ get curious!”

“Can you at least get a message back,” Hinata asked.

Tendou pouted. “What am I? A pigeon? Thought that’s what you got the Mage for?”

Hinata took another steadying breath.

_ Not human. Not human. _

Just then, a rumbling broke through on the other side of the wall, rattling off large swaths of soot to coat them both. Hinata winced as he kept his grip on the rope.

“What was that,” he whispered up.

“I believe that was them dropping a pile of wood down so they can start the fires for the night,” Tendou said brightly.

Hinata frowned, a minute little thing as he had a sudden and rather horrifying realization.

“This is the main chimney, isn’t it,” Hinata asked.

“Yep,” Tendou sing songed. “About to get very, very hot for us, isn’t it?”?”

Hinata had always had a feeling he’d die for his country…..he didn't quite expect his country’s magic to actually be the one to kill him, though.

A light started up below and Hinata scrambled up, ignoring the pull in his shoulder as both him and Tendou nearly flew up the chimney before finally there was a flicker of light above and Tendou knocked them both through a fireplace and onto a finely woven rug.

Hinata scanned the room to find it empty before he just laid back and breathed, trying to catch a second breath.

Tendou stood to cut the rope easily, snapping his fingers as the soot disappeared from their clothes and the floor. “See! No one would expect us coming through  _ there!  _ Perfect strategy,  _ hmmmm? _ ” He smirked. “I figured a spy like you would approve.”

“....Please,” Hinata said with half his usual enthusiasm, “ _ please,  _ just tell me what you found!”

Tendou tipped back his head and laughed, ruffling Hinata’s hair. “I swear! Talking with you is always so much fun, Little Ace!” He clapped his hands. “Now, come on! Up! Up! Enough of the fun, it’s time for business!”

Hinata slowly rolled to his feet and finally did a more thorough check of the room, taking note of the fineness of the decor, the way the light shone through the windows giving it a view of the entire village below.

He blinked. “Where are we?”

“The Royal Chambers!” Tendou threw out his arms like a show runner. “Ta-da! Lucky for you, the King and Queen are rather busy with a sudden unplanned, dare I say,  _ chaotic  _ mess in the throne room!”

With that, he skipped forward, snapping his fingers as a hidden drawer below the bedside table suddenly wrenched open with a pile of carefully folded letters floating through the air.

Tendou snatched the pile easily, smirking over at Hinata. “Want to see?”

Carefully, Hinata walked forward and waited for Tendou to hand it to him.

Hinata flipped through them before frowning. “These are in code, aren’t they?” He looked at the signatures, eyes widening. “They’re to Hyakuzawa’s former king, King Yuta--they have to be at least half a year old.” Hinata paused, suddenly looking up. “Which means Hyakuzawa’s been communicating with Futakuchi even through the Iron Wall?”

That was….. _ not great  _ was the only phrase that seemed quite right. Hinata supposed that Futakuchi was free to communicate with  _ any  _ of the major countries without giving Cards an advanced warning. But, it never boded well to be the country excluded--especially not when the other party was the King that tried to invade Cards.

Not dire. Hinata almost sighed in relief. The Cards and Hyakuzawan alliance was already stronger now then it had been in a generation. Even if Futakuchi was reaching out to reestablish old ties, it didn’t necessarily mean a larger plot.

“Bleh!” Tendou stuck out his tongue. “You really think I’d find you just for some old letters between kings?! Skip to the last ones.”

Hinata frown deepened even as he complied, turning to the last letters to find….they weren’t letters at all.

It was an expense sheet.

Two ships, secured outside of the Futakuchi royal navy, along with expenses enough to sustain a small crew for a little over a week.

He turned to the last page.

Not a letter. Not an expense sheet….a naval chart. A naval chart with the scheduled runs of the Iron Wall defense ships, all with one clear hole outlined in red-- _ planned _ \--for a few days earlier.

Hinata sat down hard on the ground.

Letter correspondence with a foreign king that had plans to invade Cards barely a year earlier. Expenses for a ship passage,  _ two  _ ship passages. And one clearly outlined gap in the Iron Wall, where a single small ship could get by without anyone being the wiser.

“Fates,” Hinata whispered.

Tendou leaned on his knees across from him. “You rang?”

The clues were connecting fast in Hinata’s head. Missing census records, disappearance,  _ two ships.  _ “The Hawks didn’t  _ find  _ Akiteru, he was sent to them. From Futakuchi.  _ This  _ is where he’s been.”

That was one ship and the other….

How much did it cost for one small ship to make it through? To dump two supposedly dead bodies far enough away where they would  _ never  _ be found? No matter what kind of magic a Mage used.

“It’s not just the Hawks. It’s not just a rich benefactor, not a Futakuchi nobel. It’s bigger than that.” Hinata scrubbed a hand through his hair. “The Hawks are planning to take out the Cards’ Suits and the Futakuchi king’s  _ supporting them.  _ It’s not a single attack, it’s a  _ coup  _ where Futakuchi comes out as the winner without even having to set foot on Cards’ soil.”

Tendou just hummed lightly in agreement.

Hinata looked up to meet his eyes. “Fuck.”

Tendou just smiled. “Knew you’d find it interesting.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

It said something about the company he kept that  _ by far  _ the easiest part of Hinata’s entire night was when he was left entirely to his own devices to sneak back through the castle and find the rest.

Tendou had literally popped out of existence the moment Hinata had left the Royal Chamber, which was both fascinating to see and incredibly annoying because Hinata was fairly sure it meant Hinata hadn’t needed to climb up a Fates begotten chimney in the first place.

All said the rest of them weren’t particularly hard to find. He heard them before he saw them.

….which was probably a problem.

_ “You lost him,”  _ Kenji hissed at Kuroo, the entire group camped back by the bushes right outside the palace. “He was  _ behind  _ you! How do you lose an entire person in the middle of an escape!”

“I told you,” Kuroo glared back, “he was there at the top of the tower and, then, when we got to the foyer, he was  _ gone _ !”

Kamasaki rubbed his face. “We need to  _ go!  _ We can’t just wait here until they find out Moniwa’s missing!”

“That’s a point.” Moniwa was anxiously watching the castle. “Once they find out I’m missing, they’re going to be looking for anyone out of place. If he’s still there….”

He trailed off and Kenji huffed, still glaring at Kuroo. “What kind of Ace  _ loses  _ the only man he has here?”

Kuroo bared his teeth. “Hinata can take care of himself.”

“So, you want us to leave him,” Kenji demanded.

“Of course not!” Kuroo snapped before sighing. “Go on without us. I’ll find him and--”

“Oh, excellent so you can both get killed and half of this will be for nothing,” Kenji interrupted. “For some kind of ruler, you’re--”

“And what would you know about being a ruler,” Kuroo demanded flatly. “From the looks of it, not the first time you’ve ran away.”

A wince went through the crowd, Kenji going still at the same time Aone moved forward to separate them.

From his perch a story up, Hinata restrained a sigh and continued his way down, keeping a close eye on the guards that were right on the other side.

He dropped on the other side of the bushes, unseen before he poked his head through beside them. “You’re being too loud.”

The entire group jumped, Kamasaki letting out a sharp exhale that might have been a scream if Moniwa didn’t glare him into submission first.

“Hinata!” Kuroo blinked before he glared. “Where were you?”

“I got lost,” Hinata said, trying to smile sheepishly. “Come on, we need to get out of here. The guards just finished their lower rounds, the next group’s heading to the towers.”

With that, Hinata was already gesturing forward to the gate while the others still stayed frozen near the bushes.

Hinata huffed. “Hurry! What’s taking so long”

“We were--,” Kenji spluttered, “we were waiting  _ for you _ !”

Hinata smiled. “And I’m here now so hurry!”

The group finally made it back to the outer gate, Kamasaki checking behind them to help get them out before nodding solemnly at Aone and Kenji, gripping Moniwa in a quick hug, and heading back to the palace before he could be missed.

“Is it really okay for him to go back there,” Kuroo asked.

Moniwa watched him go. “Kamasaki knows enough about swaying suspicions. H-he’ll be fine.”

The rest didn’t mention how the end sounded more like a hope than a declaration.

“Yeah,” Kenji shrugged up his hood, “well,  _ we  _ won’t be fine until we make it back to the ship and far,  _ far  _ away from this thrice cursed palace.”

He stalked back towards the town, heading towards the thickness of the jungle and the rest followed after him. They’d made it just to the edge before the  _ gong!  _ of a large bell started going off and the shouting began, loud enough to echo against the stone as it seemed like half the lights of the palace were lit in mere seconds.

“....and that’s our cue to run,” Kenji said before grabbing Moniwa’s arm and absolutely booking it to the forest. 

Hinata was a second behind, followed by Aone--who didn’t even wait before slinging Kuroo, crutch and all, up and over his shoulder, ignoring the indignant shout that got in return.

The darkness of the trees seemed to cling thicker the further that they went and Hinata’s nerves tensed, instinct trying to pull up his speed or at least the eyesight that was uniquely  _ his  _ Ace’s power even as every other instinct reminded him what an absolute terrible idea that would be.

For the record, Hinata was finding very quickly that he really didn’t like having to work missions as Hinata-the-servant and he would very much like to lodge a complaint.

“PLANK!” Kenji yelled just as they burst out of the jungle and into view of the Last Resort. “ _ PLANK!  _ OI, SAKUNAMI, LOWER THAT PLANK AND GET US THE FUCK OUT OF HERE  _ NOW! _ ”

The plank dropped, the smaller form of Sakunami already cutting ropes while half a dozen other hands pulled at anchors, all while the mast quickly billowed out to catch the wind.

The ship was already starting to pull out as the group swung themselves forward over the plank, grabbing the wood behind them before it could be pulled apart.

“Onegawa!” Kenji shouted. “We’ve got ten minutes max before they start monitoring the waters! Let’s go!”

Onegawa saluted, the laziness of the gesture only somewhat belied by the strength in which he gripped the wheel, pulling them hard out into the open sea.

Hinata very bravely ignored the subsequent roll of his stomach.

Koganegawa popped his head from below deck. “So, it worked, Captain?”

The entire group was still trying to catch their breath, heaving large gasps of air as they sat heavily on the deck.

“Yeah….,” Kenji finally managed, hand gripping Moniwa’s shoulder. “It worked….Meet Moniwa, everyone….Best Mage you’ll ever meet.”

Moniwa gave him a look. “Don’t exaggerate.”

“I’m not!” Kenji complained with a pout. “What? I can’t be  _ nice _ now?”

Moniwa rolled his eyes, ignoring the captain--Prince? Hinata was now more than a little unsure what would be the proper title to use--in favor of turning to Kuroo.

“I can fix that leg and arm now if you want,” he offered before pausing. “And the nose.”

Kuroo breathed in deeply and, honestly, for a second looked like he might actually hug the Mage. “Can you do ribs, too?”

“.....Sure?” Moniwa frowned. “Fates, what happened to you?”

“It’s such a long story,” Kuroo groaned, already moving over as Moniwa gripped his arm, closing his eyes to focus.

Aone turned to Hinata. “Your arm?”

“Huh?” Hinata gestured to his side. “Oh, it was just a little dislocation and a few bruises. Obara bandaged a lot of it on his own already. I’m good waiting.”

“Just a dislocation,” Kenji repeated, shaking his head in disbelief. “You’ve gotta be the weirdest servant ever.”

Hinata grinned sheepishly.

“The stab wound,” Kuroo mumbled, already sounding half checked out as his arm and leg started to take on a light green shimmer under Moniwa’s hands.

“ _ What  _ stab wound,” Kenji demanded

“Yeah, the stab wound’s definitely the worst of it,” Hinata admitted with a half shrug.

Kenji clearly was about to ask before he just sighed, rubbing at his temples. “Yes, fine, and Moniwa, please, don’t forget to check out the  _ stab wound,  _ too.”

“It can wait,” Hinata insisted, standing to stretch. He looked down at Kuroo and the other Ace immediately straightened at the sharpness behind his eyes. “Moniwa should preserve his magic.”

Kuroo nodded, rolling his arm to check the recent healing. “We need to contact home.”

“Yeah,” Hinata looked at all of them, “but, first, I need to tell you something.  _ All  _ of you.” He pulled out the copies of papers. “I found something.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kenji locked the door to his office before casting a quick glance out the window, checking how the island of the capital was getting smaller in the background.

“Okay, we should be fine,” he declared, turning to Hinata. “What’s so important?”

“You keep a log of the patrols that make the Iron Wall, right,” Hinata asked instead.

“....What makes you think that,” Kenji said with clear hesitation. “I’m just a simple pirate.”

Everyone in the entire room, even Aone, pointedly eyed his desk.

“Okay, maybe,” Kenji admitted. “What do you want?”

“There’s not any holes in it,” he asked. “Not that you’ve been able to find.”

“Well, it’s not called the Iron Wall for nothing.” Kenji shook his head. “No. The patrols are called impenetrable for a reason. I haven’t heard of anyone getting through it in a decade.”

“Except for us,” Kuroo muttered.

“Except for you,” Kenji acknowledged.

Hinata passed over the ship route he’d found. “So, this isn’t normal?”

Kenji took it, scanning the paper before his eyes widened. “....no, this is….where did you  _ find _ this?”

“It was planned, wasn’t it?” Hinata knew; but, he needed confirmation--even more he wanted confirmation from Kenji specifically. “This wasn’t just a mismanaged guard patrol. It was  _ planned,  _ specifically so a ship that knew about it could get through.”

Kuroo leaned forward, looking over Kenji’s shoulder and it said something about the seriousness of the situation that neither man even bothered to make a jab.

“Yes,” Kenji finally confirmed. “The outline, it’s too coordinated--the Iron Wall keeps it’s defense  _ at least  _ two ships thick at all times. For  _ this  _ to happen,” he looked up, “it had to be arranged by whoever created the routes for the entire fleet.”

“Who would be,” Kuroo pressed.

Kenji didn’t answer, Aone taking over for him.

“Only a few people would even have access,” Aone said quietly. “The Guard Captain, the Royal Advisors, or….the King and Queen themselves.”

Kenji stared at Hinata. 

“Where did you find this,” he asked again, tone expressionless.

Hinata sucked in a breath. “The Royal Suite...the King and Queen’s bedroom.”

There was silence.

“That….,” Moniwa was frowning, “why would the King put a hole in his own defense plans.”

“Not a hole, an opening,” Kuroo answered. “For a ship that he  _ wanted  _ to get through.”

“Two ships,” Hinata corrected, putting the expense sheet down next to the letters. “One to bring Akiteru to Cards about a month ago. One to bring us.” He nodded down. “....And, then, there’s the letters to the former king of Hyakuzawa--King Yuta.”

“Fates,” Kuroo swore roughly, pacing the office and dragging a hand through his hair.

Moving slowly, Kenji sat behind his desk with the papers still fanned in front of him.

He breathed in deeply before focusing on Kuroo and Hinata. “Who’s Akiteru? Where does Hyakuzawa fit into this?” His lips firmed. “What aren’t you telling us?”

Hinata and Kuroo exchanged a look, Hinata bowing his head in deference.

“Last summer, former King Yuta of Hyakuzawa tried to invade Cards,” Kuroo admitted. “The situation….was handled before it could start. No one was supposed to know about it.”

“ _ Former  _ king,” Moniwa repeated.

“He died. Of a heart attack, I think it was.” Kuroo shrugged. “Luckily, Cards has a much better relationship with his son, King Yudai.”

Aone, Kenji, and Moniwa all narrowed their eyes.

“A heart attack, huh,” Kenji asked.

“Yeah. Real tragedy,” Kuroo said dryly, already moving back to the papers. “So, King Hotaka’s interested in dropping the Iron Wall to move against Cards; but, he wants to be sneaky about it.” He tapped the letters. “Futakuchi is still smaller in manpower comparatively and with their strength entirely focused on their Navy. They’d need allies. With that, King Hotaka reaches out to Hyakuzawa, only to find out they already have a plan so Futakuchi sits back in wait.” He looked up. “Then, Hyakuzawa’s plan goes to shit, King Yuta dies along with the possible Futakuchi-Hyakuzawa alliance so Futakuchi moves on to greener pastures.”

“The Hawks,” Hinata finished.

“Who are the Hawks,” Moniwa asked.

“An insurgency group in Cards,” Kuroo answered. “They’re….” He trailed off, exchanging a quick look with Hinata.

Kenji’s hand slammed down on the table. “Okay,  _ enough _ ! It’s been a very, very long day for me  _ and  _ my men on top of a very long few days ever since we had the bloody misfortune of saving your necks from guards!” He stood and glared at Kuroo. “Enough of the  _ secrets,  _ enough of the half truths! If you want my help, then tell me what the fuck is going on!”

Kuroo stiffened before huffing. “Like you’re one to complain about secrets,  _ Your Highness _ .”

Kenji’s glare darkened and--

“It’s bloodmagic,” Hinata spoke quickly. “The Hawks have a Mage that’s using bloodmagic.”

Kuroo leaned back and coughed. “Thought we weren’t mentioning that part,  _ Hinata _ .”

“Sorry, Your Highness.” Hinata ducked his head, not at all feeling sorry. He had a feeling he was about to do even worse.

_ “Bloodmagic?!”  _ Moniwa’s face had gone pale. “Fates, that fell out of practice centuries ago! I didn’t know anyone still knew  _ how  _ to do bloodmagic!”

The rest had gone silent while Aone frowned.

“Bloodmagic,” he inquired politely to Moniwa.

“Right, right, sorry,” Moniwa waved a hand, sitting heavily in the chair in front of the desk. “It’s--well, I mean, in function, it works the same as every other kind of magic. Feeling, thinking, pushing. Feeling what’s there. Thinking how it should change. And pushing enough magic until it clicks. The difference that makes Mages is how much power we can push into it and how well we can direct it--everyone has certain parts they’re better at. But,  _ bloodmagic… _ ,” Moniwa winced, “I think it started as an advanced form of healing, something  _ good _ for controlling the body functions. It’s supposed to be really tricky, too.  _ Body functions  _ are tricky. I mean the trade off, of course, is the healing is supposed to be  _ fantastic,  _ raise from a second before death kind of good, but--”

“Moniwa.” Kenji sighed.

“Anyway,” Moniwa pulled at his collar, looking distinctly uncomfortable, “it started as healing before a few Hyakuzawan Mages learned how to weaponize it. They found a way to control the bodies remotely….like….like  _ puppets _ in a way, horrible,  _ grotesque, _ ” he winced, “and, then….”

“They used it on Cards to start a war,” Kenji finished. “The War of Blood and Bone, almost five hundred years ago by now, right? Even older than Futakuchi’s been a country.”

Kuroo nodded. “ _ Every  _ Cards kid learns about that war. It’s practically a horror story--an initial opening attack that took out two of our Kings and a Queen in a single night. Not to mention the other Suit members that died during the war. Diamonds alone lost our Queen, Jack, and Ace.”

“Not that it didn’t stop Cards from learning bloodmagic, too,” Kenji observed.

“War adapts,” Kuroo said flatly. “Adapt with it or die.”

“How do you stop it,” Aone asked.

Moniwa sighed. “Well, that’s the only good part. It’s complicated,  _ excessively  _ complicated. To fully control a body remotely, even for a Blood Mage, they need the three elements of that body--blood, bone, and hair.”

“That’s where the war got its name from,” Kuroo added.

“I guess War of Blood and Hair doesn’t sound as poetic,” Moniwa agreed wryly before turning back to Aone. “Not to mention, Bloodmagic supposedly takes  _ a lot  _ of power--it was said even fully trained Mages wouldn’t be able to do it unless they had an affinity for it. Even then, losing focus even for a second could break the control.”

Kenji pinched the bridge of his nose. “The point is bloodmagic’s a fucking nightmare and we’re  _ lucky  _ that it’s complicated, too--enough for it to have practically died out after a couple of centuries.” He looked at Kuroo. “So, how did a Cards’ insurgency group get a Blood Mage and what are they planning on doing with them?”

Kuroo smirked in a way that was decidedly sharp. “From here.”

“What,” Kenji said flatly.

“That’s what the first ship was.” Kuroo gestured to the expense sheet. “A month ago, Cards got word that a Mage named Akiteru had been smuggled in and was working with an insurgency group called the Hawks to try to stage a coup. Only thing is we couldn’t figure out where they got the Mage from, who was helping them. Guess we just figured it out.”

“Wait,” Moniwa looked up. “....a Blood Mage alone wouldn’t do anything. Who were they trying to control?”

Kuroo looked at Hinata, a question without trying to look like it.

Hinata inclined his head. “I think we need to trust them, Your Highness.”

Kuroo let out a long sigh, looking at the ceiling instead of the room.

“....Me. They got control over me,” he admitted before tilting his head to face forward and meet their eyes directly. “We think the plan was to use me as an assassin against the other Suits….kill a few most likely and turn the Suits against each other either way. They tried to use me to destroy my own country.”

The room had gone deathly quiet.

“What happened instead,” Kenji’s voice cut through.

“Oh, um, that was my fault,” Hinata said, ducking his head and attempting to fiddle nervously with his hands. “....I was cleaning and I came in at the wrong time and, well…”

“The Mage used me to attack him,” Kuroo said. “I didn’t have  _ any  _ control over my actions, didn’t even know what I was doing until the end.”

“A maid heard the sound and came to check,” Hinata continued. “Akiteru--um, the Mage--lost focus.” He shivered in a way that was only half fake. “That’s the only reason I’m alive.”

“We went out the window,” Kuroo finished. “Which means they probably thought we were both dead and dumped our bodies here--far enough where my Suit couldn’t find me, even with magic. Long enough to give them time to make another plan.” 

Neither of them mentioned the fact that, by the looks of it, the first plan had already succeeded. If it looked like Kuroo had actually killed the Ace of Spades, Cards was in trouble already.

Kuroo met Kenji’s eyes. “We don’t know if they have control over any of the others. That’s why we need to warn them. That’s why we needed to go back.”

“Of course,” Moniwa said, already standing but Kenji reached out to grab his arm.

Kenji’s eyes had already gone too perceptive, thinking of the next step instead of the current one. “And what’ll happen between Futakuchi and Cards once you  _ warn them  _ of King Hotaka’s part in all this?”

Ah, and here it was, the risk that Hinata was debating on whether or not he should take.

He glanced over at Kuroo, who was already looking back at him, a warning in his eyes but not a refusal.

Hinata understood. But, that was the thing? Kuroo wasn’t the only Ace here. And while Kuroo had always been best suited for defense, Hinata knew the power a few well placed words and a single knife could bring.

Hinata didn’t dare to hold his breath, gave no warning before jumping off the cliff and into the unknown chasm below.

“It would mean war, wouldn’t it?” Hinata’s voice was low,  _ terrified,  _ the perfect pitch of a servant who had suddenly realized just how far over his head he was.

Now, he only had to hope that Kuroo would back him up.

_ “No, _ ” Kenji bit out immediately, glaring as if daring Kuroo to counter.

Kuroo’s mouth was firm. “Cards can’t have Futakuchi funding every two-bit coup that wants to attack us and, then, hiding behind a Wall.”

“I don’t give a shit,” Kenji snapped back. “If you’re leaving these islands to come back with an armada, you’re not getting off this ship alive,  _ do you understand?” _

Moniwa and Aone had both tensed around them, Aone with his hand on his sword and Hinata tired to pretend he didn’t have his hands ready on the two daggers up either sleeves.

A few well placed words.

Hinata’s head darted between Kuroo and Kenji, looking at them both with wide, startled eyes. 

“You’d really be willing to kill us to protect King Hotaka?” Hinata pressed in, narrowed the idea.

“I couldn’t give a fuck about my uncle! Why should I? He tried to kill me when I was eleven.” Kenji spat out. “This isn’t about  _ him  _ or his stupid plans _!  _ None of this is! This is about the people in Futakuchi! And, trust me, they would  _ never  _ support something like this!” His eyes were on fire, back straight. “Like fuck am I letting them die for it!”

Almost.

“Then, what if there was another option,” Hinata broke in quickly. Not too much, just be a servant, just a servant.

“Like what,” Kuroo gave him the opening.

“Well….I don’t,” Hinata made a show of pulling at his hair, looking panicked. “It’s just nobody really wants a war, right? It’s just because of Futakuchi’s stupid King, yeah?”

He ended the question by giving Kuroo a look, quietly pleading with him to take up the rope and  _ pull. _

“Got a point,” Kuroo said smoothly. “But doesn’t really matter much now. King Hotaka will keep finding ways to attack Cards until one of them actually works. We’ll be at war whatever way you look at it.”

“Unless we can stop the King,” Hinata’s shoulders slumped. “But, we can’t just….he’s not just going to stop, is he?”

“Unlikely,” Kuroo said.

Hinata cast a look at Kenji. Take the bait,  _ take it… _ .

Kenji was silent, standing in perfect stillness as thoughts ran behind a passive face.

“....and what if you did stop him,” Kenji said quietly. “ _ Just  _ him. Then, no one would have to go to war. Futakuchi would be safe.”

“Your Highness,” Moniwa spoke up, cautiously, “you’re talking about an assassination.”

“I know,” Kenji admitted softly. “But, if it’s really the only way to stop a war, then….”

He trailed off.

“You’re really suggesting an assassination attempt on your uncle,” Kuroo asked in confirmation. “You’re really asking another country to help?”

“I’d do anything that kept Futakuchi people alive,” Kenji said hotly before he paused in thought. “And no one even knows you two are here. They wouldn’t have to know Cards had anything to do with it.”

“Who would be the leader,” Hinata tried, still keeping his eyes wide and hopefully guileless. “Would you?”

“Fuck no!” Kenji swore before shaking his head, grimacing. “Aunt Mimi-- _ Queen Maemi  _ can do it. She’s the nicest person on the entire islands. Shit, she takes in orphans in her spare time. No way she knows anything about Hotaka starting a war.”

“You’re actually going through with this then,” Kuroo asked one last time. “Planning to assassinate Futakuchi’s own king.”

Kenji’s expression twisted in an expression that was too complicated even for Hinata to pick apart.

“Fine,” Kenji finally agreed. “Guess I signed up for it when I didn’t kick you off my boat the first time.”

Hinata almost let out a sigh of relief.

A secret assassination, backed--no,  _ suggested _ \--by Futakuchi’s own crown prince. As far as international incidents go, that was as safe as Hinata could make it.

Tsukishima would approve.

Which brought up another thought.

Hinata blinked, actual honest hope for the first time daring to sneak through as he looked at Moniwa. “Does that mean we can finally contact Cards?”

Beside Hinata, Kuroo also stiffened.

Moniwa looked at Kenji, who nodded.

“.....It might take a few tries, but,” Moniwa smiled. “Where should I be aiming for?

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

There was a single truth that held Tsukishima Kei together.

Growing up he could not truly remember wanting for anything. Maybe little things--a new book, a bigger room, the last biscuit that somehow always migrated to Hinata’s hands before Kei could quite realize it. But, those were passing fancies, nothing major, not  _ needs. _

Kei did not grow up spoiled--on the contrary, he grew up consistently challenged, pushed further, strove for better--but only through careful guidance of every adult that knew that a spoiled ruler made for a weakened kingdom and Cards had always been strict about proving worthiness. So, no, he was not spoiled; but, he  _ did _ grow with the type of bone deep assurance that only came with an entire life filled with every actual need quickly satisfied before it was left to scar into true loss.

What made the matter worse was that, even as a child, Kei had the type of patience and intelligence that framed everything by the time and effort it would take rather than bother to address the possibility of it being unattainable.

Nothing was unattainable, not forever. Not for one with the mind and resources of Tsukishima Kei.

This truth was a lie.

But, lies that are held as truths for too long have a regrettable tendency of devastating everything that was built on top of it when they finally come crumbling down.

And, in the present, Tsukishima had finally run out of paths to go down.

He was back in his guest suite, the sun setting around the parchments and notes laid out in front of him with candles burning too fast into nothing.

Tsukishima’s hands were shaking, his chest still too cold under a heart too fast and….

He couldn’t find an answer.

Not a single clue, no path left, nothing, nothing, except a body and blood and broken windows and…

Not a single fucking answer to say that Hinata wasn’t dead.

Tsukishima was the smartest person he knew--this wasn’t even vanity, only pride. He always found the answer eventually, he always had, and, now, when he  _ needed  _ the answer, needed in like water or air or like the freezing rush of blood in his veins and he couldn’t find it!

He couldn’t fucking think! And no one was there to help him!

No one was even listening anymore!

_ No one! _

Which meant….which meant Hinata might as well be….be….be  _ dead  _ for all the good Tsukishima was doing and that--

There was a knock on the suite door.

“NOT NOW!” Tsukishima snapped out.

The door opened anyway.

He threw his head up, eyes flaring. “SUGA, I SAID--”

Tsukishima stopped.

“Not Suga, I’m afraid.” Takeda smiled at him from the doorway, kind and gentle like he’d just stepped out of Tsukishima’s childhood to say hello. “I think Suga’s at dinner, though. Along with the rest of the Suits. We can join them if you want?”

Tsukishima shook his head slowly, still staring with wide eyes.

“When’s the last time you ate,” Takeda asked, frowning at the untouched plate still sitting on the center table from this afternoon...or, maybe, it was yesterday.

“I--” Tsukishima couldn’t answer.

Takeda frowned, looking sad and Tsukishima immediately felt his throat clench up with the need to apologize or explain it away or find someone else to blame or….

“You need to eat, Kei,” Takeda grabbed a few fruits off the tray, holding them carefully in hands that were still stained at the edges from years of science experiments. The former Jack of Spades met the eyes of the current. “Do you mind if I sit?”

Tsukishima shook his head, gesturing vaguely at the armchairs that made the small sitting room.

Takeda ignored them to sit next to him on the floor, wincing at the cold of the stone.

Takeda laid the fruit in between them before peering up to examine Tsukishima closely.

“You look like you’re not getting enough sleep either,” Takeda said, lifting his thumb to smooth the furrow that had grown between Tsukishima’s brow. “I told you if you keep frowning like that it’s going to stick that way.”

Tsukishima swallowed, finally managing to speak with a voice only barely above a whisper. “Suga shouldn’t have called you here.”

Takeda sighed. “Did you honestly think Keishin and I wouldn’t have come when we heard? If not for Hinata, then for you?”

“You didn’t  _ have  _ to come,” Tsukishima said thickly. “Hinata’s alive. I’ll  _ find  _ him, I promise.”

Takeda watched him closely and Tsukishima felt his heart like a hammer, silently begging.

Takeda nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Tsukishima repeated.

Takeda reached out to lay a hand on top of Tsukishima, squeezing just enough for Tsukishima to feel it there “You always do your best, Kei. You know I know that. You know Hinata knows that, too.” He smiled softly. “We always have.”

Tsukishima choked down the feeling of bile. “Then, why are you here?”

“I just wanted to talk to you.” Takeda’s smile faded. “You look like you need someone to listen.”

Tsukishima’s free hand drifted to the paper. “I found….I know…”

Takeda held up a hand to stall him. “Kei, we both know you outgrew me on the schemes and mystery stuff before you turned eleven. You’d have better luck telling it to Keishin.”

“He’s here, too,” Tsukishima asked.

Takeda nodded. “I asked if I could talk to you before he had his turn. Is that alright?”

“Then, what do you want to talk to me about,” Tsukishima asked hesitantly.

“Anything, everything.” Takeda smiled. “Tell me what I missed in the palace. I heard you’re dating someone now. Is that true?”

Tsukishima stiffened. “Suga told you that?”

Takeda laughed, shaking his head. “Hinata did. A few months ago, actually.” He gave his former ward a lightly reproachful look. “At least one of you is still regular about writing letters.”

Tsukishima ducked his head with a huff. “That’s because  _ one of us  _ never grew out of gossiping to you and Keishin about every little thing,  _ apparently _ .”

“Oh, is that it?” Takeda smiled like he didn’t believe him for a second. “Well, to tell the truth, Yachi beat him to the punch. Hinata’s letters are always a little….,” Takeda paused for the words, “stream of consciousness, I suppose.”

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “His reports are like that, too. I  _ swear  _ I have to re-write half of them and his handwriting is still  _ abysmal _ !”

“Hmmm,” Takeda’s mirth was tucked into the corner of his cheek, “all of this is, of course, a wonderful attempt. But, don’t think you’re getting out of telling me about the new person you’re dating. Half a year, isn’t it? How long until you were going to get around to telling me?”

The tips of Tsukishima’s ears went pink. “His name’s Tadashi.”

“That’s a nice name,” Takeda said.

“Yamaguchi Tadashi, he works at the libraries.” Tsukishima tried to wipe away at the blush under the weight of Takeda’s smile. “Why are you even asking me? I’m sure Hinata and Yachi have already told you  _ more  _ than enough.”

“I wanted to hear it from you,” Takeda said simply. “Is he here?”

Tsukishima shook his head. “They’re getting new books at the library this week, he wanted to help pick and…..,” the blush was back, “I was going to see if….if maybe he wanted to come to Hearts’ Festival this Spring.”

“That’s a big step,” Takeda sounded like he approved. “Bringing him to the festivals, showing him the kingdom, you must really like him.” He squeezed Tsukishima’s hand again. “I’m happy for you, Kei.”

Tsukishima felt a small burst of satisfaction in his chest, almost childlike in its simplicity, and he quickly decided to move past it with his usual brusqueness. “Yes, well, it looks like this festival would have been a bad choice anyway.”

And, then, the words caught up with his mind,  _ everything  _ caught up again and Tsukishima’s jaw latched so quickly that it ached.

Takeda seemed to sense the shift in mood, smile dimming into something more fragile. “Does he know? Have you told anyone at Spades what’s happened yet?”

Tsukishima shook his head firmly. “There’s no point. We’ll find Hinata by the time we need to leave, I’ll tell the rest when we get back.”

Tsukishima didn’t want to write the words on the paper, see the shortness of the sentences, the lack of detail, the lack of explanations. It would….Tsukishima didn’t know what he’d see then, but the thought made his stomach clench and his hand squeeze tight around Takeda’s.

“You know,” Takeda began and there was an undercurrent there, something Tsukishima was too scared to turn his head and face, “when you first started training with Keishin, I was so, so worried. About both of you, actually. It would keep me up at night, all the time. Suga was this close to looking into magic to help me sleep after I nearly set my lab on fire with a forgotten boiling plate.”

“I….I don’t remember that,” Tsukishima admitted quietly.

“You were so young. Both of you, Hinata had barely gotten over losing his village.” He heard the sadness in Takeda’s voice. “We decided not to worry you further. Not with  _ my  _ fears.”

Tsukishima tried to remember how to breathe. “Hinata’s fine, Takeda.  _ I’ll find him. _ ”

“That’s not what I was worried about. It wasn’t the mission.” Takeda paused. “Well, alright, it was that, too; but, at least with those, I knew I could trust Keishin to help you. No, I wasn’t worried about what could happen  _ to  _ you two. I was worried about what you could do to each other.”

Surprise made Tsukishima turn, only so he could look at Takeda with a frown. “What?”

“You probably don’t quite remember what you two could be like,” Takeda shook his head with as much fondness as exasperation. “Believe it or not, you two  _ have  _ actually gotten better. But, back then? Constantly at each other’s throats, constantly pushing each other to do more, to be faster, to do  _ better-- _ far past anything that Suga and I ever expected out of either of you, far more than what was even  _ safe  _ when you were that young. It was like…,” Takeda sighed, trying to put it into words, “it was like watching two baby animals--like predatory birds, I suppose--that haven’t learned how sharp their beaks are yet, haven’t learned how deep their talons can cut, or the shape of their wings before they race each other to leave the nest. I was…,” he met Tsukishima’s eyes, “I was terrified, actually. The Suits have never had  _ any  _ members work together so closely. We all tend to separate fields, something we can be the best in. To have both of you work together….especially with how you used to push each other  _ so far.  _ I was so scared you’d push each other too fast, that you’d be so caught up with besting each other that you’d jump from the nest only to fall instead of fly.”

Tsukishima continued to watch him, no words coming.

Takeda squeezed his hand. “I guess that’s the selfish fear of a guardian. It’s so easy to plan for the dangers of  _ outside,  _ it’s harder when you watch your own children and are terrified they’ll break themselves.”

Takeda stopped, letting the words sink in around them for a long quiet moment, before finally he looked back up and smiled. “Do you know what made me stop worrying?”

Tsukishima shook his head minutely.

“It was another week after. Keishin had Hinata working on….,” Takeda laughed, “I think it was some kind of dodging practice and….oh, he’d done  _ terribly... _ he’d smelled like Suga’s bruise salve for days and you kept complaining and complaining about the smell never leaving your room. But, Hinata kept insisting to try again because it was  _ Hinata  _ and he’s….he’s--he’s always….” 

Takeda breathed in sharply, words cut abruptly down the middle as his free hand sprung up to cover eyes that were quickly growing wet, shoulders shaking and breath hitching as he tried to get it under control... _ to pretend  _ a moment more. _.. _ for Kei….and….

….and….in a single moment, Kei  _ knew. _

He knew; but, he didn’t want to….kept fighting it like trying to climb a rock slide. Didn’t want to look back down because the only thing down there was  _ grief  _ and  _ cold  _ and being wrong, wrong,  _ wrong _ and Kei didn’t know how….

“A-anyway,” Takeda recovered and they both pretended like the tears trailing his cheeks weren’t there and that his voice wasn’t shaking, “ _ anyway _ , Suga and I had just gotten done with some paperwork when we heard you talking. And it was far too late for you to be up so we went to get you both to go to sleep and….,” Takeda’s smile was watery and filled with so much love that Tsukishima wanted to look away even though he couldn’t. “And you were reading, just reading with Hinata leaned across your back, looking half asleep while you were pointing out pictures for different stretches Keishin said could help flexibility, could help him  _ dodge  _ and….”

“This is going to sound silly,” Takeda admitted, not even trying to hide his tears anymore, “but the first thing I thought of was a solar eclipse.”

“W-what,” Tsukishima breathed out like the word was punched from his lungs.

“It looked like the sun had shone too brightly so the moon had gone to cover it….just for a little bit.” Takeda kept smiling. “I didn’t worry anymore after that. The sun can light the moon and the moon can cover the sun; but, they’ll never try to burn out each other. They’re too important, two different kinds of lights to watch the ground below.”

Tsukishima’s heart had gone stuttering, pumping against his chest with enough violence to break his ribs and he wanted to bury his head back so he didn’t have to hear it, didn’t have to see it, could just stay in the memory of last week, of last year, of his entire life so he didn’t have to….

Takeda’s hand moved to his cheek, wiping at the tears Tsukishima hadn’t noticed and smoothing the furrow in his brow.

“.....but, I’m sorry, Kei, I think I was wrong again. I think I did you a disservice.” Takeda tried to smile and failed and it  _ hurt.  _ “You’re not just a moon….you don’t need the sun to keep shining. You’re….we’re going to be okay, alright? You can let go.”

It broke.

_ Everything  _ broke.

Shattered apart where Kei couldn’t even pretend to hold it back together.

He laid his face in Takeda’s shoulder and stopped trying, burying himself in the pain his chest and the cold howl of everything that was wrong. Of Hinata that was….that was…

Of Hinata that was dead.

“You weren’t wrong,” Tsukishima was choking, was drowning. “Takeda, you weren’t wrong. I  _ can’t _ do this. I’m not doing this. Not without….not without…..he can’t be  _ dead _ . Takeda, he’s not  _ supposed  _ to be  _ dead _ . I was supposed to….he didn’t even say anything! I couldn’t!”

“Shh, Kei,” Takeda’s hand clasped the back of his neck. “I’m here, just talk to me.”

Tsukishima pulled back.

_ “I can’t do this,” _ Tsukishima shouted and the words echoed in the stillness of the room.

“You can,” Takeda met his eyes, hands on his face. “Kei, I  _ know _ you can. You were born for this. You still are, you still can, even without….without…..Even when Hinata’s not here.”

“I can’t,” Tsukishima repeated.

“Just try,” Takeda said softly. “Please, Kei, just try. We need you. Spades needs you right now.”

Tsukishima stood and felt his knees shake under the weight.

“...Kei?” Takeda stood beside him.

“I need to go,” Tsukishima said abruptly.

Takeda blinked quickly, padding tears that were drying on his cheeks. “Where are we going? Why?”

Tsukishima couldn’t do this, he could feel it in every second, every beat of his heart, he was  _ failing.  _

But, Takeda was right.

And Tsukishima at least owed it to Spades, to Suga, to Kageyama, to--

He owed it to them to stop pretending.

“To dinner,” Tsukishima said shortly. “I need to talk to the Suits.”

And, like that, he was gone, heading to the door and down the hall even as he heard Takeda calling after him.

When he stepped into the dining room, the air was quiet and Tsukishima only had part of a mind to wonder if it was like that before he’d entered, too.

For the first time in days, Tsukishima at least felt like he could see properly again.

Could see the rest of the Suit look at him, with both resignation and the small bit of aching hope that would  _ always  _ have listened to Tsukishima’s words….even as time pulled them further from the truth.

Could see the way Suga’s hand tensed against the table’s edge, looking tired and older that Tsukishima had ever remembered him seeming and like he wanted anything in the world to not fight this battle again.

The worst was seeing Kageyama. Because Kageyama still looked up at him with light, with  _ belief,  _ and he was the first to notice the change behind Tsukishima’s eyes. Which meant that Tsukishima was the only way to see how that belief finally melted into fear and Tsukishima….

Tsukishima had to say something.

“I’m sorry,” he said softly. “I’m so, so sorry. Hinata and Kuroo are both--”

The water burst out of the pitcher mixing with wine and pulling at the very particles in the air until there was a swirling puddle of liquid sinking into the middle of the table as everyone stared down at it.

“LEV!” Yaku shouted. “WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?”

The Mage of Water held up his hands in surrender. “It’s not me!”

The puddle shifted and pulled at the table, rising into brief shapes that quietly fell back as soon as they rose and, from everything, Tsukishima could swear….

That he could hear voices.

“But,  _ where  _ in the palace?” A new voice warbled out. “You have to be specific?”

An exasperated sigh. “The dining room! I said aim for the dining room!”

On the other side of the table, Kenma froze, eyes going wide.

“I-Is that,” Yaku’s voice shook. “Is that--”

“Dining rooms are big places,” the first voice complained.

“Last time, you landed us in the river,” complained the voice that sounded like, sounded a lot like…

Lev grin went wide. “Kuroo!”

There was a pause and, then, Kuroo’s voice sounded again, clearer. “LEV?!”

“Kuroo! Kuroo!” Lev was practically halfway across the table. “What--”

Suga’s eyes went wide as he pulled Lev back. “It’s a casting spell! Someone’s trying to get his image through!”

He looked at Akaashi and Mad Dog, who immediately held up their hands, following Suga as all four Mages added in their magic, focusing.

The water swirled, pulling up and expanding until.

The form of Kuroo looked back at them and grinned. “You wouldn’t believe how glad I am to see you guys!”

Tsukishima honestly couldn’t care. Because beside Kuroo, next to an unknown man that Tsukishima assumed was a Mage, was a smaller figure that was so utterly familiar. And, then, his eyes found Tsukishima and…

Hinata Shouyou beamed out at him, hair too short and smile brighter than the sun and--most importantly--completely and undoubtedly  _ alive. _

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, everyone, thank you so much for all your support last chapter and just for this series in general! You guys are amazing and hope you enjoyed the new chapter!
> 
> Post Date: Sept. 5-6th  
> Until then, hope everyone has a lovely two weeks!
> 
> Always feel free to find me on tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	7. Chapter 7

_15 Years Prior_

_“Ow! I said_ Ow!” _Kenji whined out with all the righteous indignation of an eleven year old prince. “You’re hurting me! Quit pulling so hard, stupid Sasaya!”_

_A year his senior and a palace stable boy, Sasaya’s eyes were wide as he watched the dark halls, searching for something that Kenji didn’t particularly care about when he’d just been pulled out of bed at a frankly unreasonable hour and dragged halfway through the entire castle._

_He pouted at being ignored. He was still a prince, after all._

_“You know just because father’s…,” Kenji swallowed, the grief still too fresh to fully reference. “Just because Dad’s not here anymore, doesn’t mean I can’t still complain to Otsuka--he_ is _my regent now, you know?”_

_Sasaya’s hand stiffened around his wrist._

_“He’s not,” Sasaya whispered back._

_Kenji frowned. “What?”_

_“Otsuka, he--,” There was the sound of heavy footsteps down the hall and Sasaya tensed, pulling Kenji close to him and ducking behind a suit of armor. Kenji was halfway to protesting before Sasaya’s hand roughly covered his mouth. “Shhh! Shhh! Please, Prince Kenji! If they find you, they’ll_ kill _you!”_

_Kenji stiffened in his arms, shock more than anything keeping him quiet and still as guards ran through the halls._

_Kenji….Kenji was a prince. He’d been a prince all his life. People don’t_ kill _princes. Killing was for exciting jobs like knights and adventurers and, best of all, the pirates that existed in fantasy books. Princes died boring deaths after boring lives. Like his mother, who caught ill after a sudden fever five years previous. Or his father, barely a week earlier, who died suddenly in his sleep for reasons even the palace medics had not yet figured out._

 _The guards stopped in the hall, calling to each other. “The Prince wasn’t in his room! Search the castle! The King_ ordered _him found!”_

_King?_

_What King?_

_Kenji’s father was supposed to be king. But, he was dead. Which meant the royal advisor, Otsuka, was managing the throne until Kenji got old enough that he could do it himself._

_But Kenji was still a prince, so…..there shouldn’t be a King, right?_

_The guards finally cleared the hall and Kenji could hear Sasaya sink in relief from behind him._

_“Come on, Your Highness,” Sasaya pulled him back up and Kenji let him._

_“....Sasaya,” Kenji said quietly as they continued to run, “where are we going? What happened? What_ King _?_

_The hand around his jerked and the look Sasaya gave him in return was filled with pity--true pity. Kenji had enough experience telling the difference from a week of mourners whispering sympathy with avaricious eyes._

_“Don’t worry,” Sasaya promised. “We’re going to get you out of here. You’ll be safe. We just need to find Moniwa.”_

_Which didn’t answer hardly anything actually._

_Kenji stayed silent as Sasaya continued to pull him along, through darker passageways that Kenji only recognized from hiding from his tutors...the halls looked different tonight and, from around, Kenji could still hear the clank of guard’s armor. For the first time, Kenji didn’t find the noise comforting._

_They finally stopped at a patch of dark grass outside the kitchen and Kenji saw Moniwa pacing outside, face pinched and more worried than Kenji had ever remembered seeing in their shared lessons._

_When he saw Kenji and Sasaya, he sighed in relief._

_“Good,” Moniwa said. “Kamasaki should be getting Aone.”_

_“You think he’ll agree,” Sasaya asked._

_Moniwa nodded. “Aone’s family has been protecting Futakuchi’s royalty since the kingdom was established. He’ll choose to serve the true heir.”_

_Kenji was starting to get a very bad feeling, building in his stomach and slowly spreading throughout like a fever._

_“Moniwa, Sasaya,” he looked between the two, “what’s going on? Why are we here? What’s happening?”_

_Moniwa looked at Sasaya. “You didn’t tell him?”_

_“Didn’t have time,” Sasaya answered._

_Moniwa grimaced, turning back to Kenji. “The palace medics asked for a Mage’s help in their examination on King Hironori’s body. We--they found….,” he swallowed, “it was poison. Lord Hotaka has already had the medics killed. I….I_ saw _it.”_

_“King Hotaka now,” Sasaya muttered, speaking to Moniwa. “You sure he didn’t see you?”_

_“I hope not,” Moniwa said quietly. “I hid. I...I don’t think I’d be here if he saw me.” He shivered. “It was terrible, he didn’t even hesitate.”_

_Kenji was still staring at the two of them, unable to think through any of it. “King…”_

_Sasaya nodded. “Your uncle’s taken the crown, Prince Kenji. He controls the guards now.”_

_“If he finds you, he’ll kill you,” Moniwa continued. “You’re the only true heir to the throne, the only one in between him in the line of succession. That’s why we’re getting you out.”_

_“No, he wouldn’t--,” Kenji was already shaking his head. Uncle Hotaka had never been his favorite person, ruddy cheeks and towering frame that was more interested in a good drink and a pretty woman than whatever Kenji wanted to tell him. He was huffy and_ loud _and Kenji didn’t really like him; but….his uncle wouldn’t kill him, he wouldn’t kill his father--his own brother. That….it didn’t…._

_But, why were the guards looking for him? How did they know he wasn’t in his room?_

_It was the middle of the night, no one should have known Kenji wasn’t there until morning?....Unless….unless, the guards had already been to his room._

_Kenji sat down against the ground, pulling his knees to his chest._

_It still didn’t make sense._

_“....Otsuka,” Kenji said finally, “no, because Otsuka is the regent. Uncle Hotaka couldn’t become King without him.”_

_Sasaya and Moniwa shared a look._

_“Otsuka already swore fealty to Hotaka,” Moniwa admitted quietly. “Earlier tonight. He’s the one who crowned him.”_

_“No,” Kenji said immediately, “Otsuka wouldn’t do that! He’s loyal to me! He_ loves _me! He wouldn’t just give away my crown like that! He--”_

_Kenji was breathing too heavily and the world felt strange and much too big and much too small._

_Otsuka believed in him. He always had. He was the one who tucked Kenji in and read him stories when his father was too busy. He was the one who found Kenji when he was skipping out on lessons and always sighed and ruffled his hair, reminding him what was and wasn’t King like behavior. He was the one that always looked pained but indulgent when Kenji complained about how boring being a prince was._

_Otsuka loved him!_

_Kenji didn’t understand._

_He always said he hated being a prince. That it was all just a bunch of boring meetings and keeping up with treaties. Kenji always swore that he’d rather be something else, anything else as long as it was exciting. That he’d rather be a knight or a spy or a bard or….or a pirate, best of all._

_But….but, he didn’t actually mean it._

_Kenji loved Futakuchi, he loved the palace and the servants. He loved his life, being a prince included._

_Though, what was a prince without a crown?_

_Otsuka had taken away his crown, given it to his uncle. Otsuka loved him, believed in him, he always said so….which meant…._

_Which meant Otsuka must not believe in him anymore. Must not believe Kenji could be King one day._

_….which meant that somewhere, somehow, Kenji must have done something wrong, terribly wrong. Kenji must have done so wrong that even the man that always stood at his side had abandoned him._

_And how could anyone like that deserve to still be a prince, much less a king?_

_There was shuffling from the grass and Kenji looked up on reflex to see one of the kitchen boys, Kamasaki, make his way through with a hood covering a large boy with familiar white hair._

_“We need to move quick,” Kamasaki said. “I already saw guards heading this way.”_

_Moniwa paled, grabbing at the hoods and doing some kind of complicated movements that made the cloaks shift in color, not quite matching the grass below them but close enough to need second guess._

_“Here,” Moniwa handed the cloaks to Aone and Kenji, the later of which took it numbly. “I don’t know how long the magic will last.”_

_“There’s a supply ship that came in this morning,” Kamasaki told them, pressing a small pouch of coins into Aone’s hand, “it should be leaving soon. Get on it and hide--that’ll at least get you out of the capital.”_

_Sasaya squeezed Aone’s shoulder. “Keep the Prince safe.”_

_Aone nodded seriously, hand on a sword that still looked comically big on the too young body._

_“Prince Kenji?” Moniwa said softly, looking down where Kenji still hadn’t moved. “You need to leave.”_

_Leave?_

_Kenji still didn’t know what exactly there was outside of the palace, he’d only seen it on short trips with his father--once even so far as Diamonds. Outside the palace was supposed to be a magical world, filled with adventures fit for his stories...or, at least, that’s what Kenji had always imagined._

_Right now, the idea just seemed cold._

_Kenji didn’t want to leave._

_He took Aone’s hand anyway, letting the larger boy pull him up and into the thick of trees outside the palace walls. They were running, far away from the palace and everything Kenji knew._

_Kenji couldn’t help throw one glance back, gazing longingly at the bleached walls of a thousand different ships welded together to make what was once Kenji’s home._

_He still didn’t know what he’d done wrong._

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kenji leaned against the railing of the stern and watched the night sky shining over the ocean. 

Over the years, Kenji had lost count of how many times he’d heard the sea at night described as peaceful, transcendent, or whatever lilting words sounded best in a poem.

Personally, he’d always found it funny.

The sea was never at peace. Night was just the time it got to show it, taking any reflection of the sky and twisting stars and moon into waves and whirlpools. The clearest night sky in the world would always be thrown into rolling chaos the moment it touched the water.

Tonight, Kenji felt like he could relate.

He felt a presence next to him.

“You decide to give them they’re space, too,” Kenji asked.

Aone nodded, leaning beside him.

For a moment, they stood in silence just looking out at the ocean, their refuge of fifteen years once their own home had kicked them out. Well, kicked Kenji out at least and an Aone that had always been too noble not to follow along.

Kenji grimaced. 

He always hated dwelling on remnants of a life he no longer had. Didn’t deserve. Had been moved past by ones that knew better.

Most days, Kenji even convinced himself it didn’t hurt.

This week had not been most days and there was a limit to even how much a pirate could lie.

“....Your Highness,” Aone began.

For once, Kenji didn’t bother to correct it. “It’s the right choice, Aone. Futakuchi doesn’t need me as King.”

Aone looked like he disagreed; but, then again, he always did when the subject came up--Kenji alternatively loved that and loathed that about him.

“Aunt Mimi will do fine as Queen,” Kenji dismissed his concern. “Even if she can be a little bit….overly trusting, I’m sure she’ll be better than Hotaka. It’s not like she won’t still have Otsuka there to help her. He’s been able to guide Kings for longer than either of us have been alive; Futakuchi will be in safe hands.”

“Like now?” Aone pointed out. “Otsuka serves Hotaka, too.”

“....I know.” 

And that was one of the main reasons that Kenji was out here, looking out into turbulent waters as if they would provide him answers that didn’t exist. Because Otsuka had chosen Hotaka. Had _chosen_ Hotaka--even over Kenji, _especially_ over Kenji. Otsuka knew what kind of man Hotaka was. He had to know everything Hotaka was doing--the abuses with the Navy, the taxes that bled the poorer islands dry, and now _a war_ looming at the horizon.

Otsuka had to know.

In the span of fifteen years, Kenji had doubted and questioned and picked apart almost every single part of how he thought his life worked. There was one thing he’d never convinced himself to doubt. Otsuka was the wisest man Kenji knew and he had _always_ been loyal to Futakuchi. Above all, he would always do what was best for the islands. Everything around Kenji had fallen apart in the span of a single night, but through it all, he still believed _that._

….which meant that, for whatever reason, Otsuka still believed Hotaka was for the best of Futakuchi. Still above Kenji.

There were questions that Kenji had carried in his chest for over a decade--questions that, if he didn’t handle them carefully, he was fairly sure would eat him alive. It felt like they were already trying.

“I think he recognized me, you know,” Kenji commented. “Back at the palace, I think Otsuka knew it was me.”

Aone stiffened. “....he didn’t turn you in.”

“I know.” Kenji rubbed his chin. “I was half expecting an entire army to be waiting for us at the bottom of the stairs; but, _nothing._ He didn’t tell anyone.”

Aone was silent and, truthfully, Kenji didn’t know what else to say either.

“With Moniwa here, the crew will find out soon,” Aone said quietly.

Kenji snorted. “What that I’m the long lost heir? No need worrying about _that,_ Aone, I’m fairly sure they’ve all figured it out already.” He grinned, leaning his head against the railing. “I’ll admit I never thought I’d see the day _all of them_ managed to keep a secret, though. We must be blessed.”

“They’re loyal to their captain,” Aone corrected.

Kenji allowed a small smile, too obviously fond for the light of day. “Maybe that’s it.”

He could already tell Aone was gearing up to say something more, probably something about leadership potential or whatever gambit his first mate was trying tonight, so Kenji cut him off with the first thing he could think of. “You know I had an interesting talk with Hinata tonight.”

Aone tilted his head, waiting.

“Just something about people and ‘deserving’,” Kenji picked at the wood, smoothing out a stray splinter. “It was kinda funny, actually…..for a second, it reminded me of something Dad might say.”

Aone frowned. “Hinata is….”

He trailed off at a loss for words and Kenji understood immediately.

“He’s really strange for a servant, isn’t he?” Kenji raised a brow. “Really, really strange.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

In the stunned silence, Kuroo drew in a breath. “So, there’s good news and bad news.”

“YOU’RE ALIVE,” Bokuto shouted.

“The good news, definitely,” Kuroo smirked, “but--”

“You’re both alive,” Suga’s voice was quiet, his eyes were fixed on Hinata. A smile, still tentative as if everything would be snatched away, spread across his face. “Hin--”

“Hi, right,” Hinata interrupted him quickly, “I’m Hinata Asahi, Your Highnesses, the new Diamonds servant. Sorry for, um, missing work, I guess. I promise I have a really good excuse!”

“....What,” Iwaizumi said flatly, blinking in confusion.

Tsukishima responded out of sheer habit, his heart still beating too fast in his ears even as he registered how Hinata’s eyes flickered to the unknown Mage before looking at Tsukishima, a silent plea. 

“Right,” Tsukishima said, too strained to be normal but whatever, “well, considering the circumstances, I _suppose_ we can consider it service in absence. Just this time, of course.”

He wondered if anyone else saw the humor in the way Hinata’s eyes crinkled.

Hinata ducked his head. “Much obliged, Your Highness. I don’t suppose that includes hazard pay?”

Tsukishima didn’t have a name for the sudden rush pounding in his veins. He huffed. “What? Are you trying to bankrupt us?”

Suga laid a hand on his shoulder, face closer to normal as he caught up with the lie. “Yes, _of course._ Thank you for taking care of our Ace--Hinata, was it?”

“Hinata Asahi,” Hinata confirmed, shoulders relaxed and smile mischievous in a way only a few would recognize. “Servant of Diamonds.”

Tsukishima ran his gaze along the rest of the Suit, glad to see that it looks like most had caught on even if some had clearly just decided to stay silent. Kageyama, for one, was still simply staring like the sight alone was everything.

In the silence, Kenma was the first to speak.

“Where are you,” Kenma asked Kuroo softly. “The tracking spell came up blank. We thought….”

Kuroo winced. “That’s the bad news…..um, we’re kinda in Futakuchi?”

There was a beat.

 _“FUTAKUCHI!”_ Yaku shouted, leaning halfway across the table. “HOW IN THE FATES DID YOU END UP IN _FUTAKUCHI?!”_

“And that’s a much longer story,” Kuroo sighed.

“Well,” Suga sat down heavily, “that definitely explains why the tracking spell came up blank. Even with all of us that only spreads to half the East Sea.”

Tsukishima already had a headache that was very, very familiar

“That’s behind a military blockade,” Tsukishima said. “How are we going to get you out from a military blockade?”

Hinata grinned sheepishly.

“If it helps, we already kinda have a plan for that,” Kuroo said.

“Which is,” Iwaizumi asked.

Kuroo exchanged a look with Hinata and, oh, Tsukishima did _not_ like that look. Tsukishima was still partly in shock from _everything_ , in all honesty, but he still _didn’t like that look._

“....well, if we overthrow the Futakuchi King,” Kuroo said slowly, “the block, er, shouldn’t be too much of a problem comparatively.”

Silence. Absolutely silence as most of the table gaped openly.

Kuroo shifted on his feet and even Hinata’s eyes drifted rather than meet any of them head on.

Oikawa leaned forward, tone mild. “Sorry, I’m new. So is overthrowing monarchs a thing we’re used to doing, then? I kinda thought the Hyakuzawa mess was a one time thing?”

“ _No,”_ Yaku said vehemently. “I mean _yes,_ it was a…. _What do you mean overthrow Futakuchi’s King?_ ”

Kuroo and Hinata exchanged a look again.

Nevermind, he was wrong. Tsukishima _hated_ that look.

“Probably in the assassination sense.” Kuroo winced. “I told you it’s a long story.”

“I think….,” Suga looked over at the Mage and smiled. “I think we need to discuss matters with our missing Suit member alone for a bit. Thank you for opening the connection, I think I have a good enough hold on it to maintain it for a while.”

The Mage glanced at Kuroo and Hinata before nodding. “I’ll go check on Kenji, then.”

“Thanks, Moniwa.” Hinata smiled.

And, then, the third figure dropped away like melting into a puddle on the floor that was quickly absorbed by the remaining two. Suga closed his eyes, hands raised until the figures of Hinata and Kuroo rippled before sharpening once again.

Kuroo nodded, signaling that they were alone.

“So,” Akaashi said, voice deceptively mild, “where are we starting first?”

Kuroo and Hinata decidedly debated in a way that was so bloody transparent that, at this point, Tsukishima wouldn’t have been surprised if they flipped a fucking coin.

Hinata apparently lost the match.

“Um, alright, so I don’t know how much time we have; but….,” he breathed in, “ _so,_ in short, there’s an extremist group called the Hawks that’s, well, probably trying to plan a coup in Cards--at least, a few high profile assassinations and most likely tuning the Suits against each other. Not sure about their motives yet. Er, they also have a Blood Mage. That’s the _really_ bad part. Oh, and Futakuchi’s King is _definitely_ helping them. Um, he probably was working with that Hyakuzawans last year, too….but, I guess we don’t have definite proof of that. And, yeah,” Hinata tried to smile and failed miserably, “on the good side, though, we’ve got a pretty good plan to assassinate him, though.”

The Suits stared again.

“Like he said, that was the short version,” Kuroo added.

“The short?! THE _SHORT_?!” Bokuto shouted. “What the fuck is THE LONG?!”

Beside him, Konoha silently reached for the decanter in the center of the table, poured himself a glass, considered for another second, and then added some more. Yaku just grabbed the bottle.

“Bloodmagic,” Suga was very pale, “I….I didn’t know anyone even still knew how to use bloodmagic.”

“Apparently so and evidently someone King Hotaka sent to Cards,” Kuroo grumbled before taking a long sigh. “They got control of _me,_ they tried to use me to kill Hinata. I didn’t even know what was happening until it was over and, by then, it was already too late.”

Another long beat of quiet.

“After we went out the window,” Hinata continued, “I kinda thought it was better if we _stayed_ dead--at least to them. I used a mild poison to slow our heartbeats and that’s the last thing I remember before we woke up when they were throwing our bodies out into the Futakuchi ocean.”

Oikawa was leaned over in his chair, head propped up in his hands and eyes dark. “How did they get your bone? The hair and blood could be easy; but, not _bone_.”

Kuroo shrugged. “Who knows?”

Kenma’s gaze flickered up. “The tooth.”

“Oh,” Kuroo’s eyes widened, “right, I got a tooth knocked out a few months ago during training. I didn’t even think about it.”

“That would probably be around the time they planned to smuggle the Blood Mage in,” Hinata said.

Tsukishima frowned. “That means whoever is behind this--the Hawks or whatever--have been watching us. They were _waiting_ for an opportunity.”

“Fates,” Iwaizumi swore, “then, who knows how long they’ve been planning this?”

Beside him, Oikawa didn’t say a word even as his eyes went sharper.

“Do you have proof King Hotaka’s involved,” Tsukishima asked Hinata.

“I do,” he confirmed. “....but, it’s mostly circumstantial.”

“That might be enough,” Akaashi remarked. “If we’re starting a war with Futakuchi, it’s not like it will be a court case. We just need enough for the _people_ to know we’re on the right side.”

“There won’t be a war,” Kuroo said firmly.

“You really think we can avoid it?” Yaku asked. “Even if the assassination goes smooth, all we need is word getting out that Cards was the one that planned it and I’m _sure_ Hotaka’s next in line isn’t going to have any warm, fuzzy feelings for us.”

Kuroo smirked. “That’s why Cards isn’t the one planning the assassination.”

“In fact,” Hinata smiled, “I think it was even _suggested_ to us, if I remember right.”

Tsukishima _did_ know that look. “What did you do?”

“Come on, Tsuki,” Hinata huffed, crossing his arms, “I know how to plan for an assassination. Cards doesn’t have anything to do with this, Futakuchi’s own heir is the one who suggested it--Prince Futakuchi Kenji.”

“Even if anyone finds out, Cards is just helping under the orders of Futakuchi’s rightful heir, a longtime Cards ally before he was unlawfully booted out,” Kuroo said smoothly.

There was another long pause that had become all too common in this meeting. Tsukishima felt his headache get worse.

“YOU’VE ONLY BEEN GONE A FEW DAYS?!” Lev yelled. “How did you find a missing prince in a few days?!”

“Beats our record,” Iwaizumi muttered, glaring at Oikawa, who looked up only to smile sunnily.

“Well, it’s not like we’ve been completely lazy,” Kuroo said and he was definitely having fun with this, Tsukishima could just tell. “Why? What have you guys been up to?”

A beat passed before Suga started laughing, hesitant at first before it finally got louder with just a bit of hysteria. Without a word, Yaku offered the bottle to him and Suga shook his head before composing himself

“Not much, I suppose.” Suga smiled at them. “Glad to have you back.”

Hinata and Kuroo looked at each other again before slowly, Hinata started to smile.

“Glad we made it,” Hinata agreed softly.

And--even under the weight of planned assassinations, coups, a missing prince, and bloodmagic--suddenly, everything _did_ feel just a little bit more right in a way it hadn’t for days.

For the first time in too long, the Card Kingdoms stood united once again.

Tsukishima sighed to himself. He was exhausted, starving, worn too thin and too close too snapping, had an aching headache that he’d preemptively named ‘Hinata’, still felt like he was about to topple over at any second, and his chest had ached enough to go numb.

It was the best he’d felt in days.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Some things didn’t really have a start.

Or at least not a start that could be seen. Rocks shifted against each other so slowly that no one knew when they became mountains. Melting snow slid down land for season after season until there was a river. The slide of water washed away even the steadiness of limestone and left caves.

They were unknowable, unobservable progressions so quiet that they could never be seen.

Kenma found the idea terrifying. 

“Hey,” Kuroo said, rougher than Kenma thought he’d ever heard it and just barely going up at the end in the sign of a question.

He was back. He was back where he belongs, in the private chambers of the Diamonds Suit with only the four of them--Yaku on one side, Lev on the other, and Kenma facing all of them. If it wasn’t for the translucent shimmer of his form--the water that Lev’s magic was still holding in place to maintain the connection--then Kenma could almost believe that everything was really back to normal.

Kenma smiled, a small thing that only Kuroo could pick out. “Hey.”

And that was all it took for Kuroo's shoulders to drop, a weak laugh echoing out as he tipped back his head and sighed, covering his eyes so they can’t quite make out the expression. Kenma could anyway, he didn’t even have to think about it really. _Relief, bone deep relief._

Kenma swallowed, feeling his throat too tight and words too awkward on his tongue.

“I’m so fucking happy to see you,” Kuroo groaned into the ceiling. “You have no idea _._ ”

Yaku snorted. “Trust me, I think we might have some idea. Not every day a dead man comes back to life--much less _two_.”

“Yeah,” Kuroo sobered. “Listen, we both know even Lev here can’t hold this spell forever. I’ve been thinking….how much trouble would it be if another Suit member took a vacation?”

“WHAT?!” Yaku huffed, hands already on his hips and glaring as if the entire week could be forgotten in order for Kuroo and Yaku’s usual debates. “You’ve gotta be _kidding_ ? You _better_ be kidding? We’re already halfway to a riot over here and you want another person gone?”

Kuroo winced. “Could help if you think about it. I’m supposed to be ‘away on Ace business’, yeah? Say another person--one the people _know_ is alright--gets sent to help me. That’s gotta lend credibility, right?”

Yaku looked incredulous. “Sure, _maybe,_ if it was one of us, it could...but that’s--”

Kenma caught Kuroo’s eye.

“You want Lev,” Kenma surmised.

Lev started. “HUH?! _Me?!”_

The water form rippled as Lev briefly lost focus. When Kuroo formed back, he looked pained. “‘Want’ is a strong word.”

“Hey!” Lev complained.

“Yes, fine, I want Lev.” Kuroo rolled his eyes. “Hinata might be our best in assassination and _I’m_ certainly not going to slack any; but, facts come to shove--it’s still the two of us and a single ship crew against a kingdom. I kinda thought having _the_ Mage of Water with us might help considering we’re stuck on literal islands.”

“How would he even get there,” Yaku asked, moving closer and a step protectively in front of Lev that Kenma wondered if Yaku noticed.

“Oh!” Lev’s eyes shone, predictably already brightening to the idea that sounded much more interesting than staying at the palace. “I know a spell for that! I mean it won’t really work for more than just me! But, the ocean’s water right, I could just, you know--” Lev waved his hands in excited gestures that Kenma emphatically _did not know_ but could surmise meant some kind of complicated magic.

“Exactly, Lev could just do that.” Kuroo smirked back at Yaku, batting back the challenge.

Yaku crossed his arms. “Oh, _sure,_ never mind it’s leaving just Kenma and I to deal with the whole missing Ace mess _and_ adding a missing Queen to it, too.” 

Kenma saw Kuroo’s face fall back into a line, brow furrowing as his gaze flickered unconsciously to Kenma. _Hesitation, fear._

Kenma’s heart thumped hard against his ribs.

“Yaku and I can handle Diamonds,” Kenma said quietly and all eyes drew to him. “Lev can leave for Futakuchi after the Festival.”

“Wait?” Lev blinked. “Really?”

Kenma nodded. “Any earlier would be too noticeable.”

“No, I meant….um,” Lev looked between Yaku and Kuroo like a kid asking for permission.

“Kenma,” Yaku looked at him seriously, “....you really think this will work. Dividing the Suit even further at a time like this.”

“It’s what’s needed.” Kenma raised his gaze, just briefly, to Kuroo. “Get back _soon._ The people will get suspicious if it’s longer.”

Kuroo licked his lips, hesitating now even though he’s the one that suggested it.

Kenma held his stare, only fidgeting slightly as he felt the warmth in his cheeks.

Kuroo bowed his head. “Yes, My King.”

Yaku sighed. “I suppose I better tell the rest of the Suit, then. See if we can work up a passable announcement for the kingdom before the festival ends.” He turned on his heel to jam his finger into Lev’s chest. “And if you don’t take every _single_ precaution that you even dream to think of, then I will _personally_ \---”

“I will,” Lev yelped, holding up his hands as a shield.

With a final warning glare at both Lev and Kuroo, Yaku huffs, stomping out of the room, muttering about his Suit members the entire way.

Kuroo looked amused. “Nice to see I was missed.”

“You were,” Lev piped up, “I mean you _are,_ um, I mean until you get back, until _we_ get back, I guess and….ah?”

“Thanks, Lev. Yeah, I got it.” Kuroo had already focused back on Kenma and Kenma felt his eyes like an old coat over his back and an arm around his shoulders.

Kuroo cleared his throat. “You sure about this, My King? I can….nothing’s set in stone, even this Futakuchi mess. Hinata and I can still try to get back now. Figure out another way to deal with Hotaka.” He paused, just for a second but it was long enough for Kenma to hear the fear, the worry. “I can come back to you. To Diamonds.”

 _I need you here,_ Kenma almost said, caught it before he could leave his throat.

Instead, Kenma smiled because they both needed to believe it. “I’ll be fine. You don’t have to worry.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kageyama’s grin was wide and goofy and, if he thought about it, it probably looked really dumb and actually his cheeks were starting to hurt just a little bit.

He couldn’t care less.

Because across from him, with a form weaved of air and water, Hinata was _alive_ and his grin was just as wide.

Kageyama felt like he had just been struck by lightning, electric enough to border between exhilarating and uncomfortable,and his hands kept jumping up to reach out, to _touch,_ before he remembered and they went back to tapping a jittery pattern against his legs.

He felt warm under his collar, a blush running up from neck to ears, and--for once--he couldn’t seem to drag his eyes away from Hinata.

Away from the rest of the Suits and tucked into the room that had become Tsukishima’s makeshift office in the past few days, Kageyama finally didn’t care about waiting and trying to be _King-like_ as things like coups and assassinations were discussed. It didn’t matter here. Not when it was just Suga who had practically raised him and Tsukishima who Kageyama had long ago quit trying to be anything but himself around out of sheer self-preservation.

Truthfully, even if the rest of the Suit was still here, Kageyama had long since run out of caring what he looked weird for anyone except for Hinata.

And Hinata was staring right back.

And Hinata was _alive._

Which meant everything was alright. Because at least if Kageyama was being weird, then Hinata was being weird right back. 

It never mattered if they were both being weird together.

Hinata blinked, scratching behind his ear with hair that was shorter and darker than Kageyama was used to. “Oh, um, I got you a book.”

“Thanks,” Kageyama managed.

“I mean….,” Hinata sounded a bit breathless, “the book kind of got stabbed and it’s got a few soot stains from the chimney….but, it’s from _Futakuchi,_ so that’s still pretty neat, right?”

“I’ll read it,” Kageyama promised. “Bring it back to me and I’ll read it.”

Hinata’s cheeks warmed. “Okay.”

Kageyama nodded.

“Um, it might take awhile, though,”Hinata admitted softly. “Before I can get you the book, I mean. Sorry.”

Kageyama shook his head. “I can wait.”

Hinata was alive.

Kageyama could _see_ him, see the way his chest rose even if it was an ocean away.

Kageyama could wait for _anything_ as long as it meant that.

“I’ll bring you the book, then,” Hinata said, looking up through his lashes and Kageyama wondered how an image made of mist and air could still feel like it was lined with fire.

Kageyama’s mouth felt too dry. “Cool….I’ll look forward to it.”

There was a loud sigh and the warm haze around Kageyama’s mind immediately shifted back into his usual annoyance.

“Tsukishima,” Suga warned, but even he sounded more amused than anything.

“Look, there’s only so much weird book foreplay I can stomach in one sitting,” Tsukishima responded dryly, “and I’m the one dating a librarian. Not to mention, we only have a limited amount of time while this spell holds and,” Tsukishima raised a brow at Hinata, “I have a feeling there’s still a few things left to discuss.”

Hinata sighed, face dropping back to serious. “Yeah, a few.”

“Speaking of,” Suga hummed. “I’ve been thinking and--even with the bloodmagic--it still doesn’t explain the body.” 

Hinata tilted his head. “What body?”

Suga winced. “ _Your_ body. Or at least something that looked very, very much like it--down to the hair and blood even. We found it yesterday morning by the river.”

“Oh….,” Hinata bit his lip, looking distinctly uncomfortable and more than a little creeped out, “um, is that something bloodmagic, can do?”

“I’m not sure,” Suga said at the same time Kageyama said, “Sort of.”

Three pairs of eyes turned to Kageyama, who fought the need to cross his arms. “What?”

“How do _you_ know how bloodmagic works,” Tsukishima demanded.

“I don’t know how it _works_ ,” Kageyama huffed, “I don’t know anything about the--,” he made an aborted hand gesture, “--the magic kind of stuff for it. I just know what everyone knows about it, I guess.”

Tsukishima and Hinata exchanged a look and, then, their faces _both_ shifted to a conclusion in that quiet telepathy thing that Kageyama distinctly didn’t like when it was used against him.

“I only knew its name and that it killed those Suit members in that war a few centuries ago,” Hinata admitted. “The stuff Takeda taught us.”

Tsukishima nodded, looking pained to admit lack of knowledge on anything. 

“I’ll admit,” Suga said quietly, “even I don’t know much more than the very basic needs. It had already fallen almost entirely out of fashion even when I was first learning magic.”

“Well, yeah….,” Kageyama shifted on his feet uncomfortably, “but, it’s in books.”

“ _What_ books,” Tsukishima asked in annoyance.

“A lot of books,” Kageyama bit back. “I don’t know! I guess maybe not like _a lot_ a lot. But, a few journals from the War of Blood and Bones mention it! Definitely! Some of the defense write ups, some strategy plans. I know _those_ mentioned it, I remember reading them.”

Great. Now, Suga, Tsukishima, and Hinata were _all_ exchanging a loaded look.

“What,” Kageyama snapped out.

Hinata grinned. “I think you just became our resident bloodmagic expert, Kageyama.”

“Huh?”

Hinata ran right over him. “Okay, so what’s ‘sort of’ mean? What's with the body?”

“Uh,” Kageyama said intelligibly before at least _some_ of his higher brain process kicked in, even if it’s just the part related to memory. “Oh, I just mean that I think there was something about really good Blood Mages being able to transform bodies.”

Suga’s eyes widened. “You mean they can look like anyone?”

“No.” Kageyama shook his head. “That’s why it wasn’t used much. It’s just...the people don’t move right when it’s used on living people, the journal said it looked _weird,_ noticeable.” Kageyama shrugged. “I think they only ever used it on dead bodies--an intimidation tactic, mental warfare stuff.” He paused, trying to remember. “I think it only needed blood and hair to work...not bone.”

Hinata’s eyes flickered to Tsukishima. “They could have easily gotten some of my hair and blood that night.”

“No point in bone,” Tsukishima agreed. “What good is it to control a dead body?” 

Kageyama and Suga both grimaced at that and Kageyama noticed Tsukishima’s shoulders momentarily stiffen.

“Then, who’s the body,” Kageyama asked. “They had to have some body already to make it look like Hinata.”

Hinata’s face fell. “Aoi. They probably used Aoi’s body. His ship was the one the Hawks hired to bring in the Blood Mage.” He looked at Tsukishima. “He was the one who first told me about the Hawks’ plan.” Hinata sighed. “And they killed him for it. All for giving me a tip.”

“A tip and investigation you, _for some reason_ , decided not to inform anyone about,” Tsukishima said, words clipped. “Thanks for that, by the way. What if you really _had_ died? What would I have done then, idiot?”

Hinata immediately drew up, huffing. “Hey! I _did_ think of that! That’s why I left my notes with Yachi! Ask her!”

“Great,” Tsukishima drawled sarcastically. “You work on your own _mission_ for a month and leave the only access half the country away.” His voice went cold, accusing. “I’m sure your secrecy would have been very much appreciated sometime _before_ we were all killed by bloodmagic.”

“I didn’t _know_ about the bloodmagic part,” Hinata protested back. “Not until that night!”

“So, you knew about the rest of it,” Tsukishima demanded.

“Some,” Hinata admitted, pulling at the ends of his hair. “Tsuki, I had a good reason. You don’t know the whole story.”

“And who’s fault is that,” Tsukishima snapped and Hinata looked away.

Suga stepped in between them, eyeing them both warily. “Okay….alright, we can discuss the details when all this is over.” He sighed. “That wasn’t my point about the body, anyway--though I’ll try to see if I can break the spell and get Aoi’s body back to his family. My point is….,” he frowned, “why would they need _another_ body if they already thought Hinata was dead?”

Hinata and Tsukishima both drew back.

“Oh,” Hinata bit his lip, “oh, _huh_? That is weird.”

“They already had the ship set up,” Tsukishima said, eyes fixed on Hinata. “They had to if they were able to get you there so fast. Maybe they already had disposed of both bodies and, then….maybe when we hadn’t declared Kuroo dead, so they didn’t think we knew and--”

“No,” Hinata was already shaking his head, “they didn’t mean to kill Kuroo, remember? It was an accident. They wanted to use him more.”

Tsukishima nodded. “You’re right. Plus if they thought to grab your hair and blood _then_ \--”

“It was already planned,” Hinata agreed. “They wanted a second body that looked like me. Why?”

“Cause panic,” Tsukishima suggested. “Maybe they hoped a civilian found it before we could? Even in Diamonds, _anyone_ would recognize the Ace of Spades uniform so--”

“The body was in my uniform,” Hinata asked.

Tsukishima tilted his head. “Yes. Why?”

“Because _I_ wasn’t,” Hinata answered. “Remember? When I saw you in your room, I already changed back into my servant clothes, the uniform was underneath.”

Tsukishima blinked, leaning back to sit on the desk.

“The uniform on the body had the same magic,” Tsukishima said. “ _Suga_ was the one that had to take the mask off.”

“Can the magic be copied,” Hinata looked at Suga. 

Suga frowned, hand on his chin before nodding. “Yes, it should be fairly easy. It’s not that hard of a spell to make, honestly, just difficult to break.”

“If they didn’t know I was wearing my uniform, they’d _have_ to replicate it,” Hinata said.

Tsukishima was thinking. “Even if they _did_ see you were wearing it under, they might still. They didn’t know if other parts could be warded.”

“That still doesn’t explain the second body,” Hinata pointed out. “It just means they put in _a lot_ of trouble to make it look right.”

“I know.” Tsukishima looked up. “Wait, you said you weren’t in your uniform when Kuroo attacked you?”

Hinata nodded. “Don’t worry, I tore it up and burned it the second we got to the islands. Couldn’t risk anyone finding it.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Tsukishima narrowed his eyes. “I _meant_ they had Kuroo attack you as a _servant_. They know who you are.”

“Oh,” Hinata looked down. “Yeah, they figured it out. The Blood Mage, at least….and probably whoever he’s working for in the Hawks.”

“How,” Tsukishima asked flatly, hands gripping tight at the desk. “Where was the slip? Was it a mission or--”

“No,” Hinata still hadn’t raised his eyes. “It wasn’t a mission. They knew who to watch.”

“How did they know to watch you as a servant,” Tsukishima demanded.

“They didn’t,” Hinata mumbled. “They watched _you_.”

There was a long pause and even Kageyama didn’t know how to interpret it, watching Hinata and Tsukishima stare back at each other.

Hinata broke it, looking up at Suga and Kageyama. “Can I talk to Tsuki alone for a moment? He can tell you guys later if he wants, it’s just….,” Hinata’s expression firmed. “I want Tsuki to know first.”

Suga looked at Kageyama before back at Hinata. “The spell should still hold if I wait from behind the door.”

Hinata sighed, managing a small smile. “Thank you.”

Tsukishima was still watching him warily.

Suga took Kageyama’s arm, leading him out. He threw one last look at Hinata, only to see him smile.

“We can talk again after they’re done,” Suga promised, shutting the door behind him. He paused. “Actually, Kageyama, if you wouldn’t mind getting Keishin and Takeda? I’m sure they’ll want to see Hinata, too, before we run out of time.”

Kageyama nodded before pausing. “Suga…”

Suga met his eyes.

“What do you think they need to talk about,” Kageyama asked.

Surprising, Suga gave a small laugh. “What do _I_ think they need to talk about? Quiet a lot of things, actually.” The laugh settled into a small smile. “But they’ve always been too stubborn for that. I think the better question is what _Hinata_ thinks they need to talk about it”

Suga hesitated. “And, more telling, why it was important enough to hide.” He shook his head. “But, for that, I have no idea.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Once again and for the record, Tsukishima did not like this.

He did not like this _at all_ actually and was still at the end of a very _long_ few days and more than a little bit worn out and stretched far too thin after having a….a, _fine,_ a somewhat emotional reaction to the realization that the partner he’d grown up with was actually dead only for that realization to _apparently_ be for nothing as Hinata was clearly both still alive and well enough to irritate him.

Tsukishima was studiously ignoring any other possible reactions until he was safe in his room, in the dark, with enough time to process everything that had just happened today.

 _Ugh,_ this is exactly why he always maintained that _feelings_ were the absolute worst things to go through.

Hinata was studiously looking at his shoes, nervous and suspiciously quiet. Tsukishima glared because, for their top spy, Hinata had always been _atrocious_ at lying to people he cared about. And especially at hiding anything from Tsukishima.

 _….Except that he had,_ Tsukishima reminded himself. _Except that was the reason they were here._

Tsukishima pinched the bridge of his nose and took every drop of frustration he had and laid it bare. “For the sake of the Fates, for Spades, and the whole fucking country, _Hinata_ , just _tell me_ already!”

Hinata jumped.

“It’s your brother,” he blurted out.

Tsukishima stopped. “What?”

“Tsukishima Akiteru,” Hinata explained. “That’s the Blood Mage that’s working with the Hawks, the one that Aoi smuggled in from Futakuchi. _That’s_ why I couldn’t tell you, not until I was sure. It’s your brother.”

Tsukishima blinked slowly, a rare moment of stumbling for words. “And are you sure?”

Hinata hesitated before nodding. “Yeah, I kinda spoke to him. That’s how he knew me--he wasn’t watching me as a servant. He was watching _you._ ” Hinata’s mouths twisted into something half wry. “Apparently, we’re not that great about acting like just a servant and Suit member around each other.”

“We should probably work on that,” Tsukishima noted absently. “In public, at least.”

“Yeah,” Hinata agreed. “When I get back.”

“When you get back,” Tsukishima repeated.

There was quiet, Tsukishima thinking a million things and trying to pick one while Hinata waited for him.

“I didn’t know I had a brother,” Tsukishima mused. “I mean not a….a--,” he cut himself off. 

“He’s six years older than you.” Hinata filled the silence with facts. “I’ve been trying to find everything I can on him. I think he probably moved to Futakuchi before the Iron Wall went up. His records are all gone except for his birth certificate.”

“A lot of records went absent during the Hearts’ Civil War,” Tsukishima said, words expressionless, “It’s not too surprising. If he went to Futakuchi, Hearts has the closest ports.”

“Oh, yeah,” Hinata frowned. “I didn’t think of that.”

Tsukishima raised a brow. “We’ve worked around Hearts’ missing records before.”

“I didn’t think he’d leave the _country,_ ” Hinata clarified. “Not until I ended up in Futakuchi and found the notes. I don’t know, I guess I assumed he still tried to stay close to you.”

Tsukishima snorted. “Why would he?”

“Your _family_ ,” Hinata said as if that word meant something different than what Tsukishima heard.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “He hasn’t seen me since I was one. I didn’t know he even existed and, frankly, never particularly cared to find out. ‘Family’ is probably overselling it.”

“I don’t think Akiteru thinks so,” Hinata mumbled.

Tsukishima waited.

Hinata looked up, meeting his eyes. “It’s just something Akiteru said. He said he was doing this _for you,_ he said he was trying to protect you.” Hinata paused. “That’s not what people say when they don’t care, Tsuki. Sometimes….sometimes, I think _not_ being there can make people care even more.”

Tsukishima flinched. He opened his mouth; but, surprisingly, no words came out.

“What are you thinking,” Hinata asked.

“A lot of things,” Tsukishima answered automatically.

Hinata wrinkled his nose. “Yeah, you tend to do that.”

“I’m sure you can’t relate,” he batted back.

Hinata rolled his eyes, huffing in a way that sounded fond before the sound faded. “Tsuki….are you okay?”

“Why shouldn’t I be,” Tsukishima said and the words were too sharp, too _aching_ from the recent _cold_ and a single talk with Takeda that had worn him thin. But, Hinata couldn’t know that. He wasn’t even here, didn’t see….

Hinata _wouldn’t_ know about that. Tsukishima would make sure.

After all, it was pointless. Hinata was alive, so it was _pointless_ , it was over.

No one ever had to think of that again.

Tsukishima breathed once.

“He’s still your brother, Kei,” Hinata said, moving closer in his form of water and Tsukishima just knew everything in this office was going to end up damp. “It’s alright to be upset.”

Tsukishima blinked, surprise making him look up.

“Oh, that.” Tsukishima considered for a single second before concluding that, honestly, he had bigger things to worry about. “No, I’m fine. I don’t even know the man.He’s as good as a stranger. I’m not going to bother getting upset for every stranger that decides to be an idiot, it’s not worth my time.”

Because he insisted on being baffling, Hinata looked hurt and Tsukishima restrained another eye roll because, _of course,_ of all the assassins he had to grow up with, the Fates gave him one with a bleeding heart.

And, then, he froze.

“....Is _that_ why you didn’t tell me,” he asked quietly. “Because you didn’t trust me? You thought I’d pick some _stranger_ just because of some blood? Over _Spades_ ? Over _Cards_? You didn’t trust me to--”

 _“What?!_ Of course not!” Hinata shouted, sounding honestly shocked. “ _No!_ That’s not what I thought! _Of course,_ I trust you! Are you kidding me?!”

“Then, why didn’t you tell me,” Tsukishima asked, his heart hammering at the words.

“Because he’s your brother, Tsuki!” Hinata sounded exasperated. “I didn’t want to _hurt you!_ ”

Tsukishima stopped.

“.....not until I have proof,” Hinata mumbled. “Sorry, I guess I kinda messed the rest of it up this time. I _really_ didn’t expect the bloodmagic.”

Tsukishima’s shoulders were shaking just slightly and he desperately didn’t want Hinata to notice. He clenched down on the impulse hard, relieved when he actually managed to pull it off.

“It’s okay,” Tsukishima told him.

Hinata looked up. “Really?”

Tsukishima nodded, a barely there smile rising to the surface. “I’m used to you messing up.”

“HEY!”

Tsukishima's smile grew. Everything would _finally_ go back to normal.

He was sure of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! Okay, once again, because I gotta tell ya'll--you guys are awesome and I supper appreciate all your support :)
> 
> Next chapter should be out in two weeks, September 19-20.


	8. Chapter 8

_ 15 Years Prior _

_ Kuroo hunched his body down, practically a second coat to surround Kenma as they trudged their way up the main streets of Diamonds capital. _

_ The last of the winter snow was still thawing around them, turning the well traveled streets into a sludge of frozen mud and ice patches, and the last thing Kuroo wanted was a fall. Kenma was still short--barely eleven and small even for that. Getting knocked over could mean getting lost in the crowd, maybe even trampled if they were unlucky about it. All of which would very adamantly  _ not  _ be happening. Not on Kuroo’s watch. _

_ It was Kuroo’s job to protect Kenma. It was what he’d promised to Kenma’s mother and his own father before they’d even left the village. It was what he was marked to do as Diamond’s future Ace. If anyone asked him, he was fairly sure by now protecting Kenma was what he was  _ born  _ to do, actually. _

_ Which now meant getting Kenma to the palace unharmed. _

_ And keeping him unharmed every other day, for the rest of their lives, if it was up to Kuroo. _

_ That said, he still felt a little bit better once they’d gotten out of the central market, the crowds thinning enough that Kuroo felt comfortable shifting his hold to something a step down from what was practically a human wall separating Kenma from the rest of the world. _

_ He eased, just slinging an arm around Kenma’s shoulders to keep them both close and smiling as he felt Kenma’s shoulder relax in the less busy streets. _

_ And, then, Kenma sneezed. _

_ Kuroo stopped, pulling them off to the side and assessing critically that the worn out wool hat was still tugged firmly around Kenma’s ears, the scarf still would surrounding exposed skin, and Kuroo’s own faded coat hanging baggy around the smaller frame of Kenma’s shoulders. _

_ Kenma gave him a look that would appear blank to anyone else but, through years of practice, Kuroo could pick up the mix of exasperation and indulgence. “It was just a sneeze.” _

_ “We can take a break if you want,” Kuroo offered. “We’ve been walking all day. It might not be a bad idea anyway.” _

_ “The palace is warmer,” Kenma shot the suggestion down. _

_ Kuroo chewed on his lip. “Yeah….but, who knows how long it’s going to be to convince someone to let us in, not to mention find one of the Suit. Could take until the night. Maybe we should wait until the morning, see if--” _

_ “Money,” Kenma reminded him. _

_ “.....Yeah.” _

_ The trip had taken longer than expected, neither expecting quite the traffic or just general wear it would take to make it from their village all the way to the capital. Neither Kenma nor Kuroo’s families were rich anyway--both single farmers, trying to make sure their remaining crops made it through the sudden cold front. They’d barely been able to scrape together what savings they had to secure the journey over the mountains, coins that had been stretched far too thin to afford an extra stay at a city inn. _

_ “I can find something,” Kuroo promised. _

_ Kenma smiled or….well, his eyes turned up slightly and Kuroo knew what that meant. _

_ “I’m fine,” Kenma said. _

_ Kuroo looked him in the eyes and when Kenma didn’t look away, Kuroo nodded--way too used to taking Kenma’s assessments as truth to even try putting up a fight for too long. _

_ He led them back to the street, arm wrapped back snugly to pull Kenma closer in an attempt to keep him warm. _

_ Even under the coat, Kuroo could feel how Kenma’s shoulders had gotten too boney. A worse winter than expected and a sudden bout of fever was all it took and the memories of Kenma sweating in a too cold hovel were still a bit too fresh for Kuroo to relax at “just a sneeze”. _

_ In the end, maybe it was for the best--he didn’t know how much longer it would have taken their parents to finally be convinced to let them off if it wasn’t for a few pointed arguments about palace resources. _

_ Anyway, none of that was particularly what Kuroo wanted to think about so he filled the silence in one of the ways he knew best, inane rambles. _

_ “Who do you suppose we’ll run into first?” Kuroo went on without expecting an answer. “My bets on Queen Nekomata. Apparently the Jack’s really big on visiting the Research Institutions once winter starts clearing up so who knows if she’s in the palace.” He paused. “Course could be the Ace, I suppose; but, I bet he spends most of the time training.” His smile fell a bit. “Rumor is that with the King passed, the Ace already submitted his intention to retire, hope he still stays around long enough to teach me a few things.” _

_ He smirked down at Kenma. “Though, hey, think I could beat him in a duel now?” _

_ “No,” Kenma said flatly. _

_ “Kenma!” Kuroo whined dramatically. “How could you?” _

_ “Not yet,” Kenma amended. _

_ “That sounds better.” Kuroo considered for another second. “Probably need to get a sword, too. Feh, don’t know why duels always gotta be with blades. Archery’s  _ much  _ better. Why would I ever use a sword when I’ve got a bow?” _

_ Kenma shrugged minutely and Kuroo noticed he’d looked up, eyes focused on the crates being loaded off of the smaller river boats. An official looking woman stood beside it, surveying the progress and inventorying on fine parchment the symbol that marked each of the boxes’ origin. _

_ Kuroo let out a low breath in relief. “Good, looks like the extra grain from Spades already made it this far.” _

_ “Not much from Hearts,” Kenma remarked quietly. _

_ “Hmm?” Kuroo blinked, looking at the boxes again. The most--and by a good bit--were from Spades as made sense from Cards’ main crop supplier, a few of the finer good were marked with the Clubs symbol, one every so often from Futakuchi, even less from Hyakuzawa, and fewer still from Nohebi. _

_ Kenma was right. Compared to the boxes from Spades or even Clubs, the number from Hearts seemed paltry. _

_ Kuroo shrugged. “Maybe they had a bad winter, too. Whatever. The extra from Spades will probably help enough.” _

_ Truthfully, Kuroo had absolutely no idea if that was true. Their village was a smaller one, fairly self-sufficient for the most part and Kuroo only knew just a little bit more about the country’s crops in general from talking to his dad about when to sell what and where. _

_ Even a quarter of those Spades crates was more food than Kuroo had seen in a lifetime. The Clubs crates probably had more jewels than the village put together. _

_ But, Kenma was better at that than him, able to put together the larger pieces despite the fact he’d never even seen their edges. _

_ Which meant there probably was something more in what he was saying. _

_ “Or maybe Hearts’ Ace is being a dick again,” Kuroo said, not bothering to keep the contempt out of his voice. “Another season where Hearts ‘needs to keep their extras and their extra’s extra saved back’, eh?” He rolled his eyes. “Honestly, you’d think Hearts was preparing for a war with all their shit about keeping their stocks up.” _

_ Kenma was still frowning. _

_ “It’s fine, Kenma,” Kuroo trudged them along. “I’m sure if it gets too bad, Queen Nekomata will say something.” He grinned. “Heh, or hey, maybe our Ace will deck that Hearts’ asshole like he did at Spades’ tournament a few years ago. That would be cool, right?” _

_ Kenma hummed, neither in agreement nor disagreement. _

_ Kuroo took that to mean either Kenma thought he had a point or had decided he’d rather not continue talking about it until he had more to go on. All options which basically meant Kuroo was good to change topics. _

_ “What do you think the palace is like,” Kuroo leaned in, close enough he could drop his voice down to a whisper. “I heard it has spires that are so sharp it looks like they’re cutting through clouds.” _

_ “Clouds aren’t hard to cut,” Kenma pointed out. _

_ “Really killing the energy I’m trying to build here, Kenma.” _

_ Kenma smiled, the small but noticeable one, and the sight made Kuroo’s shoulders ease. _

_ “Well, fine,” Kuroo whispered back, “I still think you’re going to love it, though.” He focused on Kenma’s face as they walked up the next hill, watching for the incremental changes in expression. “You know, one day, Kenma, I’m going to find you something that I know you’ll finally admit is amazing.” _

_ Kenma met his eyes. “Okay.” _

_ “Okay?” _

_ “Find me something amazing,” Kenma clarified. _

_ Kuroo smirked. “Oh, you are so on. Challenge accepted.” _

_ Then Kenma stopped suddenly, eyes flying wide. _

_ “What?” Kuroo blinked, cursing himself for being distracted as he looked at what had gotten Kenma to make  _ that  _ expression. _

_ In front of them, the palace of Diamonds rose up from mountains and river, spires so high that they disappeared up into the sky and waterfalls rushing down around it. _

_ It was larger than anything Kuroo had ever imagined could be built with human hands and, beneath his arm, Kenma had gone entirely still in a way that meant--for once--he was just as stunned as Kuroo himself. _

_ Kenma recovered first, expression composing first even though his eyes were still wide. _

_ Kuroo made it through to give him a grin. _

_ “Well, Kenma, welcome home.” _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

The ocean was a vast kind of concept that was much easier to understand in figures and naval maps right up until one was thrown smack in the middle of it and, suddenly, realized how  _ big  _ it actually was.

Leaning against the railing of the ship’s bow as the sun started to rise over the horizon, Kuroo imagined that he could feel every current, every wave, every drop that separated him from his home.

Kuroo had never particularly been one for reminiscing. He’d grown up and with that, meant he’d traveled a million more steps and seen a thousand more amazing things than a simple farm boy bringing his best friend to the palace. Looking out at the ocean was a lot different than seeing the Spires of Diamonds for the first time; but, somehow, Kuroo still had a similar sense of unsteadiness shifting under his feet.

It felt like change.

Kuroo didn’t exactly know what that change would mean. He didn’t know if he liked it yet.

There was a half groan, half yawn from next to him and Kenji leaned on the railing next to him, shirt untucked and hair looking in desperate need of a brush.

“You’re up early,” Kenji remarked.

“So are you.”

“Ah, and that’s where you’re wrong, Mr. Ace.” Kenji halfheartedly held up a finger in a parody of a reveal. “For  _ I….. _ never slept.”

The side of Kuroo’s mouth ticked up. “I’ve had those nights. They suck.”

“Yeah, well,” Kenji sagged against the rail, rubbing a hand against a face that was probably overdue for a shave, “it’s not like there’s anyone who _wouldn’t_ lose a bit of sleep about planning to kill their last family member, no matter how much of a shit one he’s been.” Kenji paused thoughtfully. “Actually, I take that back. I don’t think my uncle’s lost one day of sleep in his entire life. But, still, I’d rather not make him _my_ standard.”

“I’m sorry,” Kuroo offered quietly. He’d been a soldier long enough to know those words rarely helped anything and he’d been an Ace long enough to know they should be said anyway.

“It’s for Futakuchi,” Kenji said just as quietly, not looking away from the water. “If it’s for Futakuchi, I can accept just about anything….that doesn’t mean I have to be happy about it.”

Kuroo shrugged. “Yeah…..pretty sure being King means being unhappy about a lot of things.”

“I’m not King,” Kenji corrected sharply. “I won’t be. Getting rid of my uncle and stopping his plans is one thing; but, being King….I’m not going to do it. Don’t ask.”

“Alright.”

Frankly, at this point, Kuroo didn’t particularly care who was King of Futakuchi as long as they weren’t attacking anyone and Kuroo could go home to his own king.

Kenji’s eyes grew sharper. “Speaking about ‘unhappy’, you don’t look particularly happy yourself, Ace.”

Kuroo rolled his eyes. “You know you can just call me by my name,  _ Prince Kenji _ .”

“Kuroo,” Kenji amended flippantly, “let me rephrase: I thought after Moniwa got you back in contact with your dearly beloved Suit, you’d be over the moon. Seems to me like you’re bogged down even worse….which is saying something considering you were in the process of getting beaten up first time we met.”

“Was there a question in there or….”

“Don’t bullshit with the sleep deprived,” Kenji huffed. “I meant what’s the stick in your ass now,  _ Kuroo _ ?”

Kuroo didn’t respond for a long moment.

They’d gotten in contact, yes. His Suit didn’t think he was dead or, even worse, a traitor and a murder. However, his kingdom was still in danger of being attacked at any second, a Blood Mage could still use him like a puppet, they were in a foreign country and planning on assassinating a leader, and he had no idea when he could go home. All of which he thought were pretty reasonable options to not exactly be  _ thrilled _ . 

Really, really fair options, actually.

But, Kuroo didn’t get the title of Chessmaster by not being able to handle multiple strategies at once, no matter how bad the stakes. They were worries; but, if he was honest, not enough to drive him up to the ship’s bow to measure distance between here and Diamonds.

In the end, there had always only been  _ one  _ thing that could make him like this.

He kept his lips pressed firm.

But, his fear couldn’t do anything to help Kenma this time.  _ Kuroo  _ couldn’t do anything. For the first time he could remember, he’d left Kenma alone.

And it wasn’t even something he could fix. Not yet. Not when Kenma said he should stay here even if it meant leaving him alone.

So, no, Kuroo wasn’t particularly worried, he was  _ terrified. _

Those weren’t the kind of things he could just admit to a foreign leader, though. Not even one that was helping them.

So, he shrugged again. “What can I say? I’m a deep thinker. You should try it some time, Captain.”

Kenji snorted, either taking the weak jab or letting Kuroo off the hook. “You’re right, I shouldn’t stop you just because you’ve started thinking. I’m sure it’s a new experience for you.”

“And yet I still found time to sleep last night,” Kuroo taunted right back, falling into their normal rhythm.

“Kick a man while he’s down,” Kenji tsked. “This is what Diamonds has sunk to. I’m already shuddering about what we can expect for that Mage of yours you invited.”

Surprising both of them, Kuroo threw back his head and barked out a loud laugh.

“Trust me,” Kuroo smirked when he’d finally settled, “No one knows how to expect  _ Lev. _ ”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“Awww,” Lev pouted, poking at his small breakfast, “I can’t believe the festival’s ending already.”

Akaashi sighed, not looking all that put out. “It’s definitely been an eventful one.”

Suga nodded. “Of course, the bad part of that is that today and tomorrow will be the last time we can meet in person until Hearts’ Festival.” His frown deepened. “Three months is a long time if it means whoever these Hawks are could be planning something.”

“Not to mention, it’s been an entire week and the people have  _ barely  _ seen any of us since the opening ceremony,” Yaku added. “Even with the Winter Festival mainly being for exhibitions, they’ve had to have noticed only Lev and Suga have attended anything.”

“That’ll make the rumors worse,” Oikawa surmised quietly.

“About that,” Tsukishima spoke of for the first time and the entire room sat a little bit straighter, everyone either consciously or unconsciously wary from the last Suit meeting. Tsukishima ignored their worry deftly. “I think the rumors are being perpetuated by the Hawks.”

“Why,” Konoha asked.

“It makes the most sense.” Tsukishima shrugged. “They’re looking to sow chaos between the people, right? That was their whole point in having Kuroo try to kill another Suit member. Their plan wouldn’t work if no one knew Hinata was dead.” He leaned back in his chair. “Plus, it explains why the body we found was wearing the Ace uniform when Hinata wasn’t wearing it when he was attacked. They needed a body easily recognizable as our Ace and  _ everyone  _ knows that uniform, even if they don’t know Hinata’s face. If anyone else found the body first, we’d already be dealing with a small uprising on our hands.”

Kenma blinked. “Hinata wasn’t wearing his uniform?”

Tsukishima shrugged. “Apparently, he had it under his clothes. Don’t worry, he destroyed it when he got to Futakuchi. Unless something screws up monumentally, no one on the islands should be able to link the Ace of Spades back to Hinata.”

“Fake body is still creepy.” Bokuto wrinkled his nose. “Can we like….I don’t know, throw it away or something?”

“Probably a bad idea to throw away our only concrete example of blood magic,” Suga said. “Not to mention, we think it might originally have been a Spades’ civilian. I’ve been trying to break the spell; but….” He shrugged, “Kageyama and I are going to be looking at everything we have on blood magic to see what else we can find out.”

“So, what are we going to do with the body,” Konoha asked. “Will Spades take it?”

_ “No,” _ Kageyama said vehemently. “I don’t even want to look at it.”

Tsukishima and Suga exchanged a look.

“Our King has a point,” Tsukishima said. “Hinata’s too easily recognizable in Spades, even if they don’t know he’s the Ace. Keeping a body that looks identical to his in our castle is too much of a risk.”

“We can take it,” Iwaizumi offered. “It makes the most sense. Hearts is where we’ll all be for the Spring Festival; so, it'll work in case Suga and Kageyama find something. Or if Kyotani wants to look at it.”

Mad Dog grunted in distaste, making his feelings on blood magic  _ abundantly  _ clear.

“Agreed, Hearts makes the most sense to take the body,” Tsukishima tapped his fingers against the table. “Hinata already found information on the Hawks plus--even without our Ace--we’re still the most suited for information gathering, so Spades can take point on finding the Hawks.”

“Are you sure you want to,” Akaashi asked when it was clear no one would. “You said they were working with your brother, it’s fine if you’d want one of us to take the lead.”

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “A brother I’ve never met. I’ll be fine.

The rest of the table hesitated.

Tsukishima’s entire countenance darkened. “I’ll actually be fine this time. Trust me.”

Akaashi acquiesced with a nod.

“If you need help,” Konoha offered.

“We all do,” Oikawa said bluntly. “Spades is down a member, Diamonds is about to be down two, we have a coup that’s already tried to kill two of ours and we have a Blood Mage after us. We don’t even know if he’s gotten control of anyone else.”

The entire room seemed to shudder at the thought.

“It’s most likely he doesn’t,” Suga spoke quietly, “at least not another Suit member. If Akiteru could have controlled one of us, there’s no reason he wouldn’t have this past week when we were most vulnerable.”

“Or they’re planning something bigger,” Oikawa suggested.

Konoha sighed. “People can always be planning something bigger that doesn’t have to mean the worst option.”

“But it  _ could _ ,” Oikawa said. “We need to at least consider it.”

“Okay, but how?” Yaku spoke up. “We already established that we don’t know how long they’ve been watching us. Maybe a year, maybe a decade? That puts practically all of us at risk. There’s no way to even tell.”

“So, what do you suggest,” Oikawa asked sharply. “Hoping for the best?”

“No,” Yaku said, narrowing his eyes. “But, until we have proof one of us could be at risk, the best option we have is to trust each other.” He made a wide gesture to encompass everything. “The Hawks’ main plan so far has been to turn people against each other. If we can’t even trust each other because we think someone  _ might  _ be under control, then the Hawks win anyway. We don’t have another choice but to trust each other.”

Oikawa considered for a long moment.

“Cards Stands United,” Iwaizumi reminded gruffly.

Oikawa gave a small smile, nodding. “Alright.”

“We’ll still try to find out more about blood magic,” Suga said. “Maybe we can find a way to counter it.”

Konoha winced. “If there was a way, I’m pretty sure we’d have heard of it.”

The words sunk in around the table.

The Diamonds’ Winter Festival was finally coming to an end and there was only more questions than when it started.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Aone had always thought of himself as the type of man that could live by a few simple principles.

The first, the oldest, the one that had been instilled in him over and over before he’d even gotten to see a sword:  _ Protect those in need of protection. _

Aone liked that principle. It was straightforward, not always easy to do but at the very least easy to understand. Of course, he was fairly sure his parents had never predicted this meant becoming a pirate; but, then again, Aone  _ still  _ thought of it as protecting the weaker….just maybe not against the foes that one would expect. 

That was another thing he’d learned as he’d grown, there were those he’d found he couldn’t protect. There were problems that he’d learned could not be solved with a sword and the right application of weight. Some things were bigger and more complex so that’s where the second principle came in.

The second, almost as old as the first, the one that had guided his family for generations and back to the founding of his country:  _ Serve the rightful heir. _

That one was another one that had gotten somewhat more complicated as the years went by; but, Aone believed he’d learned how to adjust. After all, the  _ rightful  _ heir wasn’t always the one who sat on the throne, merely the one that  _ should  _ sit there. In Aone’s mind, there was no doubt at all that he was following this principle to the letter. Now, he only needed to convince his rightful heir of that.

Third:  _ Stand by those that would stand by him. _

Aone had always found this one easy enough. He was fairly loyal already by nature; it wasn’t a burden to find more people who he was willing to call fellow allies….he’ll admit he wasn’t expecting to add a Cards’ Ace to the mix. But, if the Ace of Diamonds could help with principle two, Aone wasn’t turning away from it.

Fourth:  _ Always trust what he could see before what he was told. _

Which led him to his current contemplation.

Aone slashed down with his sword as if to aim for his opponent’s arm before changing the angle at the last possible second to swipe for the neck.

_ Tense. Beat. Pause. _

The sword was less than an inch away when Hinata stumbled back, dropping the knife and cringing with an upheld hand as if that was going to do anything to stop a sword.

“I yield! I yield!” Hinata yelped out. “Mercy!”

Aone stopped immediately, sword returning to a loose hold at his side.

Hinata dropped his woefully inadequate block, grinning up at Aone with shining eyes. “That was  _ amazing,  _ Aone! You were like  _ pow!  _ and then  _ swishhhh!  _ I barely even saw it coming when you swapped the angle!”

Aone had made it a habit of training all the new ship members, the longest for a little over five years. 

He’s not sure any of them would have caught the shift in angle fast enough to react.

But, he  _ is  _ sure all of them were trained enough to block with a blade rather than their hands.

Aone took the knife off the ground and handed it to Hinata. “Don’t drop your blade.”

“Sorry,” Hinata rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, “this is a lot different than just throwing the knives for hunting, you know?”

Aone nodded, shifting back into his ready stance.

Hinata mirrored him. 

Aone attacked again, purposefully moving at a slower pace to try to draw Hinata into the rhythm of the motions. It worked. Hinata was catching more, still at the last second and  _ almost  _ a miss but still he caught it.

Aone dropped the pace, stabbing up violently and  _ fast. _

He kept his eyes open and fixed and…. _ there. _

_ Tense. Beat. Pause. _

Faster than it would take to blink, Hinata’s muscles tensed and readied to move before there was a beat of stillness and a pause just long enough to turn any defense Hinata could make into a last minute scramble.

Hinata backed up fast, tripping over his feet as he did so and almost stumbling before catching himself with those good reflexes that Aone  _ knew  _ he had.

“Watch your paths of retreat,” Aone pointed out.

“Right!” Hinata beamed. “But, hey, at least I didn’t drop my knife this time!”

Aone tilted his head in acknowledgement.

He attacked again when Hinata had relaxed, clearly expecting the snippet of talk to have signaled the end of another match.

Aone darted forward.

Hinata’s knife swiped up on reflex, catching the sword and throwing it off a millisecond before it stabbed his chest.

A beat as they both stared at each other. 

Hinata dropped his knife before scrambling down to catch it.”Ack! Sorry! Sorry, I know  _ don’t drop it!  _ I just got excited! I can’t believe I got that one!”

Aone watched him.

Hinata’s grin never faltered. “Guess it was delayed survival instinct, huh? Or maybe beginner’s luck. You’re a really good teacher, Aone! Thanks!”

Aone didn’t really think he was teaching Hinata anything, actually.

Instead, Hinata was a mess of beginner mistakes and sharp moves--ones that Aone had never seen from experts--that only faltered at the last second to end in more trouble than if Hinata had just stuck to the basics.

And, then, there was how Hinata tensed--always ready to make a move that never seemed to be actualized.

Aone compared it against anyone he’d ever fought before and couldn’t find a match.

Knights and pirates with advanced training would sometimes tense like that, those with ready muscles and fast reflex honed by keeping them alive for years. But, they  _ always  _ knew how to then act on that tension.

The ones he’d trained would often begin with the same mistakes Hinata made; but, never quite so consistently. And when they  _ did  _ have moments of advancement, they were always a bit sloppy--carrying the awkwardness of a new movement that needed practice rather than the efficient motions Hinata sometimes made.

Out of curiosity, Aone compared it to his matches against Kuroo but couldn’t find a match there either. The Ace of Diamonds clearly knew his way around a sword--he was good at fighting with one, not that Aone had really expected anything different. But, even without Kuroo offhandedly complaining about the lack of a bow, Aone could see the way it was a secondary choice rather than his favored weapon. The sword movements were efficient; but, they looked like practice rather than true passion.

Hinata’s style was utterly unique and very sloppy.

….almost like it wasn’t Hinata’s true style either.

Aone smiled to himself.

Kenji had called Hinata “weird”; Aone was going with “interesting” for now. Besides, there was always the fifth principle:  _ Always find respect for a good fight. _

The only thing was Aone was fairly sure fights with Hinata weren’t about whether he could win; but, rather when he could move fast enough to get Hinata to move on instinct rather than carefully fumbled dodges.

All in all, it made for an entertaining fight.

Besides, Aone felt pretty certain Hinata was the Ace of Spades.

So, that was definitely interesting.

He might mention it to Kenji when he had more to go on.

Until then, Aone was enjoying his new opponent.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

It hadn’t gotten better.

Kenma wondered if he was being selfish.

He breathed in, closed his eyes and tilted his head back. He leaned against the wall of one of the many closed off storage spaces, too high in the Spires for many to bother seeking out.

In a way, Kenma thought it had gotten even worse and that alone made a horrible, sick, crawling feeling he thought was guilt sinking somewhere below his stomach.

The problem was that if he was thinking logically--which Kenma always tried to do--then it  _ was  _ better. Of course, it was. Kuroo was  _ alive.  _ Kenma had seen him, had talked to him, knew that he was coming back. Hinata was alive with him. So, yes-- _ logically _ \--it was better.

The clammy, itching feeling beneath his skin had never been logical. It was a feeling that wanted to be held tighter, far away from people and talking, to a place where he didn’t have to worry about having the right thing to say and could simply take the silence and focus on everything else.

_ That _ feeling had not gotten better, it had only gotten worse and Kenma was starting to suspect it wouldn’t get better any time soon. Not until Kuroo and Hinata were back and Kenma didn’t have to find the words to speak anymore.

The problem was that Kenma didn’t have that kind of time.

Kuroo and Hinata were both needed in Futakuchi. Kenma had always been good at seeing the larger picture. Without action done on Futakuchi’s home territory, without stopping their King, the problem would only increase until eventually an attack on Cards hit home. Kuroo and Hinata were their best chance at stopping it--the pieces that needed to stay at the other side of the board.

And Kenma couldn’t afford to wait for them. He was King. There was a coup being attempted. There was blood magic and--like the King of Hearts had brought to attention this morning--the doubt on who else might have been affected. Diamonds had already been brought to the forefront of the attack and the people were  _ scared _ . That was Kenma’s responsibility.

He’d ever had to face it alone before.

There was a hesitant knock at the door, followed by shuffling feet.

Kenma held his breath and hoped whoever it was would just walk away.

The other Suits were busy putting their final preparations underway to leave Diamonds. Lev was getting ready to leave himself and Yaku was helping. None of those tasks needed Kenma. There shouldn’t be anyone trying to find him until the evening.

“Kenma?” called a voice, uncharacteristically quiet. “It’s just me. Can I come in? Please.”

Even if Kenma had to guess, he didn’t think he would have guessed  _ that  _ voice.

He thought it might have been the surprise alone that caused him to say, “Come in.”

The door to the storage room inched open, slowly at first until bright eyes found Kenma’s and a smile spread out on the visitor’s face.

Bokuto shut the door behind him before heading to where Kenma sat and sitting across from him, noticing the tension in Kenma’s shoulders and moving just far enough away to where he saw Kenma relax.

The King of Clubs and the King of Diamonds sat facing each other on the floor of a dusty old storeroom, more fitting for mice than royalty.

“How…,” Kenma started before clearing his throat at the way the word seemed to cling uncomfortably in his throat.

“Huh?” Bokuto blinked, tilting his head in confusion before he seemed to guess at the question’s end. “Oh, this was the only storeroom with the door shut. I guessed and got lucky. I don’t know. You don’t really like to go outside and if  _ I  _ had to pick somewhere in the palace….,” he shrugged, “this just seemed like somewhere I’d go if I didn't want people to see me.” Bokuto shuffled again, smile getting softer and warm as always. “Thanks for letting me come in.”

“It’s a storeroom,” Kenma said.

“It’s  _ your  _ storeroom,” Bokuto corrected and Kenma didn’t think he meant it in the same way as it being in Diamond’s palace.

To be honest…..Kenma had never thought he understood Bokuto particularly well.

Bokuto had always seemed loud and big, offbeat and hectic in a way that was inherently different from the soothing dependability of Hinata’s constant motion.

They weren’t exactly close--more being brought together from corresponding positions and shared friends. Kenma knew Bokuto as Kuroo’s close friend--one that had always been outstandingly good at getting Kuroo to relax when he’d overwork and, for that, Kenma would always be appreciative. He knew him as Akaashi’s husband--a strange relationship that somehow made sense, but Kenma felt had given him more insight on Akaashi himself rather than the man he’d married. He knew Bokuto even more rarely from how Hinata would sometimes talk about him--bright, energetic, fun, someone that would cause Hinata to ramble excitedly more than providing information for Kenma to actually form an opinion.

The truth was that, for Kenma, Bokuto had always seemed something of an opposite polar force. They might have the same people gravitating between them; but, that didn’t exactly make it any easier to meet in the middle.

He’d assumed it was one of those unspoken things. That Bokuto felt it, too, without them ever having to mention it.

None of that explained the how or the why for Bokuto being here now.

Bokuto wasn’t looking at him, focusing on drawing patterns in the dust instead and Kenma couldn’t tell if the lack of directness was for him or Bokuto.

“.....I thought you might be having a rough time,” Bokuto admitted. “Sometimes it’s like that for me, too. Like I can handle the pressure when people need me and are focusing on me. But, then when they look away and I get a chance….,” Bokuto’s waved a hand absently, “it’s like it all hits me at once and then, I have to deal with it and that  _ sucks _ .”

Bokuto lowered his voice even further. “I don’t really like people to see me like that, though. I can….I mean some of the time having Akaashi can help a little bit; but, everyone else….,” he swallowed, pausing to find words in a way Kenma couldn’t recall him doing before. “It’s not really like it’s a fun thing to talk about, right? It’s not something I want them to worry about. Fates, it’s not something  _ I  _ want to think about even if a lot of times I can’t stop thinking about it.”

Bokuto trailed off and there was a long wavering silence that followed behind the admission.

“Why now,” Kenma asked. “Why me?”

“Oh.” Bokuto looked up and that small smile was back. “Because I thought it might help. Sorry, that’s the other part. I really don’t  _ like  _ to talk about it; but, sometimes I have to. Sometimes, they need to know, too.” Bokuto rubbed the back of his neck. “And...sometimes talking about it helps it get better; sometimes the pressure is still there--it depends on the time, I guess. I don’t think there’s any way that  _ always  _ works; some times just suck until I get through them. But, that’s….,” he blew out a breath, “the point is that, either way, then at least someone else knows about it. Then, at least they  _ can  _ help. I mean….they can’t help anything if they don’t know, especially since sometimes I say like  _ a lot;  _ but, none of it’s really what I meant to say and that’s just….”

Bokuto cut off his ramble, waving a hand again. “Anyway, I just wanted you to know you’re not alone.” He finally met Kenma’s eyes and the look was soft. “I know Kuroo’s not here and Hinata’s gone, too; but, that doesn’t mean the rest of us can’t help, too.”

Kenma looked back, feeling like his mouth was too dry to speak. He tried anyway. “I’m not….good at talking.”

Bokuto nodded, propping his head up like he was thinking. 

“Alright, that’s fine.” Bokuto shrugged. “It’s okay to help in other ways. Akaashi doesn’t really like talking too often either; so, sometimes, I just bring him food when he’s busy or play something so he’ll go to sleep.” He grinned. “Yukie always likes us to spar with her when she’s stressed. You can try that!”

Kenma’s lip quirked up without him even thinking about it.

“Or maybe not,” Bokuto continued amicably. “Point is there’s a lot of ways we can help. So, just think about it, okay? Just because you don’t want to talk, doesn’t mean you have to do  _ everything _ by yourself, alright?”

Bokuto rolled his shoulders, not really expecting an answer from Kenma. 

“I guess…,” Bokuto finally said, so quiet that Kenma could barely hear it, “I guess also  _ I  _ really wanted to talk to you, too. For me. I mean I know everyone loves Hinata and Kuroo and is happy and everything; it’s just…,” he rubbed at his eyes even though they were dry, “I really,  _ really  _ thought they were both dead.” 

“They’re not,” Kenma said for both of them.

“Yeah,” Bokuto agreed readily. “But,  _ you  _ get what I mean, right? Just because they’re fine now, it doesn’t mean all that other feelings and stuff just went away.”

Kenma nodded.

Bokuto’s face slowly folded back into a smile. “Thanks for talking to me, Kenma.”

Bokuto stood up in a stretch, wiping the dust off his pants which only really succeeded in spreading it everywhere.

Bokuto frowned at the pants before shrugging. “Okay, I’ll let you have your storeroom back again.”

A small part of Kenma was struck with the sudden urge to ask him to stay, the far larger part of him really did want the quiet.

Kenma struck a compromise down the middle.

“Thank you,” he said to Bokuto’s retreating back. “I’m glad you found me.”

Bokuto’s smile widened to a grin, tipping his head in acknowledgement.

The door shut back behind him.

And…..amazingly….

Kenma did feel a little bit better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys--thanks for your patience, I know I'm a few hours late on this one. Also, all the comments from last chapter should have replies today--I just figured ya'll would prefer the chapter being posted first. With that please know that I appreciate all of the comments and all of the support ya'll have given this story. As always, I'm so thankful for you guys!
> 
> Alright, I will fully admit this is more of a reflection chapter to get everything ready for some exciting new developments starting next chapter.
> 
> Next Post Date: Oct. 4-5
> 
> Always feel free to find me on tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	9. Chapter 9

_ 13 Years Prior _

_ “Your Highness,” Aone said, low enough so no one could hear him. As if anyone on these docks really cared about what two thirteen year old boys were muttering about. _

_ Here’s what Kenji had learned about Aone in the past two years of being constant travel companions. The guy didn’t really like saying anything more than the minimal requirements; yet, somehow, he was still able to cram a whole lot of meaning into whatever he deigned to speak. _

_ For example, Kenji could now accurately interpret “Your Highness” into “I am utterly dismayed at our current endeavor and highly encourage the consideration of alternatives” and “It is my firm belief that this plan will cause us nothing but pain and untimely deaths” and “In the entire realm of my entire existence, I could never fathom something so ill considered” and “You’re an idiot, Kenji.” _

_ See, expressive! _

_ Alright, it was probably mostly the last one; but, the point was Aone still got the meaning of pointed judgement across. _

_ “It’s our best option,” Kenji muttered back. “We can’t keep hoping across merchant boats and praying we don’t get recognized. Plus, Uncle Hotaka is getting worse about sending the guards into the villages and if they see me, we really are dead.” _

_ “Off the coast,” Aone suggested. _

_ “I considered the inner village; but, let’s face it there’s not many of those anyway and what there are will  _ definitely  _ make note of two strangers, even if they’re kids.” Kenji smirked up at him. “And, gotta admit, we’ve got like approximately zero marketable skills combined. So, unless you want to take up begging or mercenary work with that huge sword, then we’re screwed there, too.” _

_ Aone frowned. _

_ “Relax, I did my research.” Kenji continued to pull him forward. “It’s not like I’m going to sign us up with a bunch of murderers.” _

_ Aone did not look like what he  _ was  _ doing was significantly better. _

_ “You’re the prince,” Aone said softly. _

_ Kenji bit down on the still too sharp pain those words brought. _

_ “Not anymore,” he said bluntly. _

_ “Kenji.” _

_ Kenji sighed. “Well, it’s not like these guys aren’t Futakuchi people, too. Besides, I told you. I asked around. Apparently, these guys mainly just target the excess of merchant ships trying to gauge prices.” He grimaced darkly. “Most of the  _ really _ bad ships fled for the main continent before the Iron Wall went up.” _

_ Aone still didn’t seem particularly confident, but there was at least an incremental ease in allowing Kenji to drag him along. _

_ They both stopped when they found the ship, hidden away off the docks and further away from where the guards checked. _

_ Kenji smiled at Aone. “You don’t have to do this with me, you know? I know you think it’s your job to protect me and I appreciate it,  _ really,  _ but….,” he rubbed the back of his neck, “well, it’s not like I’m really a prince anymore and I don’t think any of your family expected this. If you don’t want to,” Kenji gave him as confident a smile as he could and told himself it wasn’t a lie, “I’ll be fine alone.” _

_ Aone didn’t even hesitate. “Staying.” _

_ Kenji blinked. “You sure?” _

_ A nod. _

_ “Okay….,” Kenji puffed out the breath he’d been holding and gestured wide to the ship, “then, let’s go become pirates, then.” _

_ The ship in front of them didn’t look anything like Kenji had imagined from story books. It was old, there were obvious signs of wear from fights, there was no black flag hanging proudly at the top. But….it was there and it was looking for crew. _

_ That was alright.  _

_ Kenji had learned real life was not much like story books at all. _

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Empty eyes stared up to the ceiling.

“Suga?”

“Hmm?” Suga suppressed a shiver before looking up at the person who greeted him, taking in the stiff posture and tense expression. “Oh, is something wrong?”

“No,” Kageyama stood in the doorway of the crypt. “We--I just didn’t know where you were?”

“Oh.” Suga gave him a small smile. “I’m fine, Tobio. I just wanted to do a final check to see if I could find anything before we moved it--him--,” he sighed, “ _ the body _ to Hearts.”

Kageyama stepped forward with clear hesitance, as if every bone in his body didn’t want to get closer to the corpse masquerading as Hinata but he was purposefully ignoring that impulse. “Did you find anything?”

“No.” Suga bit his lip. “This bloodmagic, it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before. I thought I might as well try to put some preservation charms on it--at least to keep everything stable until the Spring Festival--but, whatever this magic is, it’s not decomposing.”

“What does that mean,” Kageyama asked.

“It means that there’s no change.” Suga waved a hand. “The body now is exactly like we found it a few days ago at the river--complete preservation, none of the normal signs you’d expect from a body at this stage.”

Kageyama’s jaw clenched tightly, uncomfortable.

“Sorry, you don’t have to be here if you don’t want to,” Suga told him.

Kageyama shook his head. “If we’re going to be working on finding out about bloodmagic, I have to know what it can do.” He hesitated. “Besides, it’s  _ not  _ Hinata, right? It just looks like him.”

“Right,” Suga moved closer to where the body was laid out. “Here, actually, I did find something. It doesn’t really help about bloodmagic; but….”

He folded the fabric around the arm, pulling it down until the Spades’ Mark was shown. 

“Look,” Suga said.

Kageyama frowned. “It looks like Hinata’s Mark. How….how did they do that?”

“Exactly,” Suga nodded. “It’s  _ exactly  _ Hinata’s Mark--it’s a copy. Except for one thing.” He turned back to Kageyama. “Close your eyes and try to picture it.”

Kageyama did as he was instructed. “Okay? I got it.”

“You shouldn’t.” Suga smiled. “Not if it was an actual Mark of Cards, the magic shouldn’t let you remember it properly once you look away.That’s why Hyakuzawa last summer had to try to imitate the magic, too. Anyone that looked at this Mark long enough could tell the difference between it and a real one.” He waited until Kageyama opened his eyes. “See, that’s the difference in bloodmagic. It can copy the physical body to the details; but, it can’t replicate the magic attached to it. ”

Suga’s smile went wry. “I know it’s a small thing. But, it does make me feel a bit better that it has its limits. And….,” he looked down, “I should have noticed it earlier. It’s the only detail that separates this from Hinata’s actual body. I  _ should  _ have noticed it when I first checked.”

He shook his head. “It just helps me put things in perspective, I suppose. Tsukishima was far too focused on ignoring everything to prove Hinata was alive and I was so convinced he wasn’t that I couldn’t bring myself to examine the body any closer.” Suga looked up at Kageyama. “That’s the real danger of bloodmagic. It’s hard to think clearly when the opponent looks like a friend, like family even.”

Kageyama considered. “Emotional warfare and magical warfare.”

“Yes,” Suga agreed. “You’re right, that’s exactly it. Between Akiteru and how Tsukishima thinks the Hawks might be spreading dissent among the people, the real plan is to tear Cards down from the inside.”

“That’s not going to happen, though,” Kageyama said firmly. “Like Yaku said, that’s why we need to trust each other.”

Suga tapped his fingers against the stone. “Right, but Oikawa had a point, too. We don’t know who might also be susceptible  _ and  _ if we get too suspicious of everyone, it will play right into the Hawk’s plan.” He sighed. “It makes things rather tricky, doesn’t it?”

Kageyama didn’t argue. “We’ll figure it out.”

“We’ll have to,” Suga said but did offer a smile. “But, it will be good to get back home.” He laughed. “I swear this one festival feels like it’s lasted months rather than a week.”

Kageyama nodded, taking one last look at the body before wrinkling his nose.

“And it’ll be good to get away from this thing, too,” Suga admitted, standing up and grabbing Kageyama’s elbow to lead them both away. “Come on, it probably is getting late now and we have to leave in the morning. Might as well try to get some sleep.”

The two left the crypt together, the body continuing to stare lifelessly behind them.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Tsukishima felt ridiculously frustrated.

The feeling wasn’t out of the ordinary.  _ Clearly. _

What was far more unusual and quite a deal more irritating was that this time he had no one to blame for the frustration other than himself. 

In short, he couldn’t sleep.

Which was ridiculous, of course, considering even he could tell the bags under his eyes had far passed bruised and were moving quickly towards unsightly-- _ maybe  _ because he’d already been up half the Fates begotten week worrying about Hinata. But, Hinata was alive now and frustrating as ever, so Tsukishima really didn’t understand why he couldn’t sleep  _ now. _

He really…..he really thought he’d be back to normal already.

It was-- _ concerning,  _ he supposed--that he still felt like something was missing.

He glared into the darkness.

He wondered if he could ask Suga if there was some kind of magical procedure that could cut down on frankly unnecessary emotions. No, Suga would give him that parental judging look and, then, Tsukishima would have to gag so that was a definite no. Maybe Mad Dog, he seemed like he’d understand.

Or Lev. Lev was gullible.

He rubbed at his eyes. That was probably the lack of sleep talking.

_ ….probably. _

All in all, at two o’clock, roaming the halls aimlessly in the pitch black, Tsukishima really didn’t expect to hear another voice standing out on a balcony and having a yelling match with the sky.

“OI, YOU BASTARD!” The man shouted. “COME ON, YOU FRICKIN’  _ STALK  _ ME FOR TWELVE YEARS AND  _ NOW  _ YOU’RE TOO BUSY!” A long pause. “ _ ARE YOU IGNORING ME?!  _ ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME HERE,  _ YOU’RE  _ IGNORING  _ ME _ ! OF ALL THE LOUSY, USELESS, EXCUSE FOR A--”

The man cut himself off with a hissed sigh, speaking again and sounding like he was trying for reasonable even as he missed the mark entirely. “Listen, Ushijima, you’re supposed to come in dire times, right? Because times feel pretty fucking dire, so why don’t you get your ass over here and--”

Tsukishima coughed lightly and the man spun around with eyes wide.

“Oh,” Oikawa said disappointed, “it’s just you.”

Tsukishima revamped his assessment of the new King of Hearts to include definitely strange and possibly insane at the top of the list. Then again, looking at the rest of the Suits, neither was exactly a deal breaker.

“What are you doing,” Tsukishima questioned.

“Stargazing,” Oikawa said without missing a beat.

Tsukishima raised a brow.

“Anyway,” Oikawa pointedly moved on, “the constellation I’m looking for apparently has cloud cover, so what are  _ you _ doing out here, Jack of Spades?”

“Stargazing,” Tsukishima said flatly.

Oikawa smiled. “Couldn’t sleep, could you?”

Tsukishima sniffed. “I don’t know why you’d assume that. I’m an information broker, most of my business happens at night. For all you know, I could always be up this late.”

Oikawa watched him, looking amused. “That’s hilarious. Do you really have to try to hide  _ everything _ ? Is that a spy thing or a you thing?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“Yeah, actually,” Oikawa answered. “I would. Still trying to learn my way around these meetings, you see. I like to know the people I’m working with, especially when we’re in the business of running kingdoms.”

“And what have you found,” Tsukishima asked, vaguely curious what went on in the head that had refused his crown for over a decade

Oikawa shrugged. “A little bit of everything. Some things I did expect, others that surprised me. None of you are what I expected when I was younger, so that’s good.” His tone was dry. “I didn’t exactly have high opinions of Suits and Kings, you understand?”

Everyone knew about the Hearts Civil War. Everyone knew that out of all the Suits, the Hearts’ people were still the most cautious about their trust, even now.

“But, no, you exceeded my expectations--all of you, even just in half a year,” Oikawa continued. “It’s clear that you care about your people, that you care about each other even, and doing the ‘right thing’. That’s what’s most important--maybe not perfect, but  _ good.”  _ He smiled. “A woman a lot wiser than me told me I can’t expect even royalty to not still be human, myself and you included.”

Oikawa leaned back on the railing, tilting his chin up to look up at the stars. “I guess that’s also what’s worrying me. You all are so  _ good  _ and  _ kind  _ and I think the Hawks know that, too. I think your  _ brother _ knows that.” He looked straight and met Tsukishima’s eyes. “And I think they’re going to use that to destroy us.”

Tsukishima watched him back, waiting.

“Actually,” Oikawa flicked his hand at the broken window of the throne room, just visible a wing away, “they already tried and it almost worked.”

Tsukishima met his gaze steadily. “Knowing problems are great; but, functionally useless unless you have some solutions there, too.”

“You’re wrong,” Oikawa argued. “Not useless, knowing the problem tells you where to keep looking and, right now, we can’t afford to look away.”

“Excellent,” Tsukishima deadpanned, “I guess we can all just stare blankly at the obvious so hard, we all go blind then. That’ll help.”

Unexpectedly, Oikawa tipped back his head and laughed. “I think I like you.”

Tsukishima snorted. “I’m not a very nice person to like.”

“Neither am I,” Oikawa said. Another pause. “Are you worried about him? It’s alright if you are.”

Tsuksihima looked at him like the question was ridiculous. Because it was.

Oikawa didn’t waver. “That why you can’t sleep?”

Tsukishima huffed. “Hinata can take care of himself. Whether in Spades or on some bloody islands, doesn’t matter. Honestly, with the amount of missions he’s gone on that he could’ve been--” he cut himself off with a hand wave. “He’ll be fine. If anything, I’m worried the others will get in his way.”

Oikawa hummed. “I actually meant Akiteru. Interesting, though, you assumed the Ace of Spades.”

“That’s even more ridiculous,” Tsukishima scoffed. “I don’t even know the man, why would I be worried about  _ him _ ?”

“It doesn’t really have to make sense. Emotions don’t, I mean. If so, I’d probably have been King a lot earlier.” Oikawa rolled his shoulders. “Anyway, I know if I suddenly had a lost hidden brother that apparently looked for me, I’d at least be interested.”

“I’m….,” he scowled. “I have other things to worry about.”

“Of course,” Oikawa soothed--though, coming from him, the words only sounded more infuriating.

Tsukishima raised a hand to scrub at the back of his neck, the motion unconscious and unaware before he caught Oikawa’s stare.

“Don’t think anything of it,” Tsukishima ordered.

“It’s still there,” Oikawa told him. “If you were wondering, your Mark’s still there.”

_ “I know that,”  _ Tsukishima snapped back.

There was a long pause

“You know,” Oikawa looked down at his hand where his own Mark laid--the sign of Hearts. “I always thought that the red looked kind of like blood. The palace minstrels and the ballads always talk about roses and sunset crimson and all of that bullshit, but the red’s too deep for that.” 

“Charming,” Tsukishima said.

“I know.” He smiled though it didn’t look very pleased. “Really, I prefer to think about it like blood, like a reminder. Because when you have so many lives in your hands, so many people counting on you, you’re going to get blood on your hands. Both your enemies...and...and, too often the people you’re trying to protect. And that’s…”

Oikawa paused, “well, not, okay but understandable, I guess. The price of leadership. But, the thing that separates a good leader from a bad leader always lies in whether they remember that, remember what they’re trying to protect and what they’re sacrificing...You don’t get that with roses or sunsets. You get that with blood.” 

There was a long moment of quiet where Oikawa gripped his hand steadily into a fist before releasing it easily.

He looked back at Tsukishima. “So, I guess the real question you have to ask, Jack of Spades, is who are you protecting and who are you sacrificing. And, most importantly, who’s blood’s going to be on your hands.”

Tsukishima stared at him. 

“I’m fine,” he insisted.

“You shouldn’t be,” Oikawa said, almost offhanded as the gravity behind his voice faded away. “After  _ this week,  _ none of us are fine. We’re not asking you to be inhuman. We’re asking you to know your limits.”

Tsukishima fell silent again

“I’ll be fine,” he corrected.

“If you can still see the problem,” Oikawa said, not unkindly. Then, he shrugged. “You should get some sleep

“You first.”

“Heh,” Oikawa coughed out a chuckle before stretching. “Actually, you’re right. It’s been a very strange week and I’m  _ exhausted.  _ I always thought these festivals were supposed to be fun; but, so far, I’m two for three on strongly would  _ not _ recommend.”

Tsukishima gave a half smile. “Maybe you’re bad luck.”

“That’s what Iwa-chan tells me,” Oikawa agreed flippantly.

“Also, ‘strange’ is not the word I’d use for this week,” Tsukishima said.

Silence and then a laugh, too harsh for amusement.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Oikawa said, “you know I spent years in my village fighting against Futakuchi pirates that wanted us dead and robbed. And, now, we’re working with Futakuchi pirates to kill a king.” More a baring of teeth than a smile. “Strange how life works, isn’t it?”

For once, Tsukishima had no parting words.

Oikawa waved a hand. “Have a nice night, Tsukishima.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Privately, Oikawa admitted that he might just be more exhausted than he’d admit.

Stupid Ushijima, somehow making him lose sleep and look crazy and  _ still  _ not bothering to show up. He was supposed to be Order, right? Well, things were feeling pretty  _ disordered _ , thank you!

At the very least, Iwaizumi was practically a furnace so the bed would still be warm and soft when he got back from the cold, deserted halls of Diamonds.

Or….apparently not so deserted.

Oikawa caught a shift in the shadows and brought a hand up to his only knife, still held by his hip from habit.

There, in the darkness of a doorway, not the right shape for the Fate.

Oikawa steadied his hand on the knife and prepared to yell, because he was not an idiot and would not be fucking dealing with bloodmagic alone.

And, then, the shape stepped forward into the light.

Oikawa blinked before he smiled, lowering his knife. 

“Well, hello there.” Oikawa cocked his head. “Looking for me?”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kenji locked the door to the office, separating him, Aone, Hinata, and Kuroo away from the rest of the ship before spreading out a map of the capital on his desk. 

“Okay,” he said, “so, what’s the plan here. I don’t know about you two; but, I’ve never exactly planned an assassination before?”

“Um, yeah, me either,” Hinata said.

Kuroo coughed hurriedly into his hand.

“But, if I had,” Hinata continued. “I’d say the most important thing is cleaning up loose ends, getting in and getting out without getting noticed.”

Kenji raised a brow. “He’s the King. That’s a lot of loose ends and I’m pretty sure they’re going to notice quick.”

“Yeah.” Hinata looked down at the map. “You’re right. This isn’t going to be unnoticeable, not for long.”

Kuroo spoke up. “And, honestly, a quick job before ditching might just make things worse. It’ll be chaos. Where there’s chaos, someone else can rise quickly and the last thing we want is to kill one guy, just to have one of his cronies step in and take his place.  _ Worse  _ even since the new guy will know we’re coming and have the power to wipe us out before we even try to get back to Cards.”

“Isolate,” Aone suggested.

Hinata nodded. “Right, the best idea would be to find out who all knows about the King’s plans with Cards, find out who King Hotaka is close to and make sure they’re not a threat either.”

“Who would that be,” Kuroo asked.

“Well, we’re not exactly exchanging holiday cards.” Kenji sighed. “But, the obvious ones are his advisor--Otsuka--and the guard captain.” He paused. “I don’t really know much about the guard captain. Kamasaki said it was someone new, one of Hotaka’s old navy buddies.”

“If he’s the one that’s also in charge of the Iron Wall shifts, then he had to know,” Kuroo said. “That’s the only way they could create the hole in the defense for the ships to come through.”

“What about Otsuka,” Hinata asked. “What do you know about him?”

Kenji sat heavily in his chair. “We can’t kill him.”

Kuroo and Hinata exchanged a look.

“I mean we tend to not  _ like  _ killing anyone unless they’re trying to kill us first,” Kuroo pointed out. “But, how do we know this Otsuka’s that innocent. He’s the top advisor, right? For all we know, he could take up King Hotaka’s plan the minute a ruler is out of the picture.”

“Let me clarify, we’re  _ not  _ killing him.” Kenji met their eyes. “I know Otsuka, he practically raised me. He doesn’t care about money or power. If he did, he could have gotten those a lot earlier--with or without my uncle’s help. Otsuka only cares about the Islands.” He looked back to the map. “I don’t pretend to know how Otsuka’s looking at this, what he’s thinking now--fuck, what he’s been thinking for the last decade--but I know he’s loyal to the country more than anyone. I refuse to be part of something that will kill him for it. Do you understand?”

In silent agreement with Hinata, Kuroo spread his hands in surrender. “Fine, but we still may need to get him out of the way. Just in case.” His mouth quirked up into something wry. “In my experience, passion and loyalty are great and all; but, it’s terrible for planning when it makes someone crazy enough to do anything if they think it’s for the best.”

Kenji nodded. “Whatever we come up with, I’ll handle Otsuka.”

“I was wondering something, actually,” Hinata said. “What about the Queen? King Hotaka’s married, right? You said she’d be fine to rule. How do we know she’s not in on it, too?”

Aone pressed down on a smile and Kenji didn’t even bother, throwing back his head to laugh.

“No, Aunt Mimi--” he corrected himself. “Sorry, Queen Maemi is like an actual saint. I honestly don’t even know how Hotaka got her to marry him.” He snickered. “Listen, the woman takes in orphans and, like, feeds the poor during her spare time. King Hotaka may be the most hated person on the entire islands; but, the people practically kiss the ground she walks on. I  _ promise  _ if she knew about Hotaka’s plan, there’s no way she’d be able to hide it.”

“How could she  _ not  _ know.” Kuroo crossed his arms. “He’s her husband. Hinata found the papers in their room.”

“Well….,” Kenji trailed off.

“Very trusting,” Aone said.

“Exactly,” Kenji said. “She’s kind; she’s….not the most politically involved. Never has been, really, even back when Dad was still alive. She mainly just stayed in the library and talked with Otsuka. And as for the room,” he shrugged, “they got married when she was early twenties and he was pushing forty, it’s not exactly a marriage with a lot of lost love. I doubt she’s in the room most nights. She’s more the type to not ask as long as Hotaka lets her do her charity work.”

“Not politically involved isn’t really the type of person you want running the government,” Kuroo said.

“She’ll be fine if she has to. She’s smart just….,” Kenji sighed again. “Well, it’s not like we have any other options.”

Aone wisely chose to remain silent.

Hinata moved on. “Okay, so that’s the King, his advisor, and the guard captain that we have to watch out for.” He looked to Kuroo. “I don’t want to say it. But, this is going to take longer if we’re going to do it right. We need to plan surveillance for the capital, watch the castle, and try to see if there’s anyone else we need to plan what to do with.”

“It’s not like we’re not waiting for Lev anyway,” Kuroo said.

Kenji hummed, watching Hinata. “You sure know a lot about planning to sneak in places, don’t you?”

Hinata smiled. “Really? Thanks! I read a lot of adventurer books when I was growing up, I suppose it stuck!”

“Yeah? Me, too.” Kenji narrowed his eyes. “What was your favorite?”

“The Noble Thief,” Hinata said without missing a beat. “My brother and I read those all the time.”

“Never heard of it,” Kenji said.

Hinata shrugged. “Must be a Cards thing. Guess they were really helpful, huh?”

“Guess so. That where you learn lock picking,” Kenji asked.

Hinata laughed, dodging the question entirely. “Good one, Captain. Anyway, I think we should try to set up people around the capital. Maybe not Aone or you; but, people that won’t get easily recognized. Hopefully, we can figure out how to actually get in the palace. That way we can--”

An urgent knock on the door. “CAPTAIN!”

Kenji was immediately up and answering it. “What?”

“A ship!” Onagawa said. “From the northwest!”

Kenji drew up short. “Not a guard ship?”

Onagawa shook his head. “Didn’t recognize the flags.”

“Problem,” Kuroo asked.

“That’s the direction for the Iron Wall,” Kenji said. “Shit, they let someone else through.”

That was all it took before all of them were up on the main deck, eyes focused on the small dot that was finally coming closer.

And, then, it got close enough to see and Hinata’s heart stopped.

“Hang on,” Hinata said, gesturing for the telescope. “Wait….is that…”

“Oh fuck,” Kuroo said.

“What,” Kenji asked. “Is it a Cards’ ship? Is it your Mage?”

Hinata shook his head.

“No, those are Hyakuzawan flags.” He lowered the scope grimly. “I think things just got a lot more complicated.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! As always, thanks for your support and hope you enjoyed! 
> 
> Next Post Date: Oct. 17-18
> 
> Always feel free to find me on Tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	10. Chapter 10

_ 16 Years Prior _

_ A ten year old Tsukishima Kei was one who was very certain about his place in the world and how everyone else was supposed to fit around it. _

_ ….which, really, wasn’t all that different from a nine year old Kei….or a six year old….or, if anyone asked Takeda, it wasn’t that much different from a three year old Tsukishima Kei, huffing around on wobbling legs and a face that seemed far too unimpressed. _

_ Tsukishima had always been an uncompromising sort of child. _

_ Adding a ten year old Hinata to the mix was a bit like throwing oil on flame before adding gunpowder to the mix and there was a steadily increasing number of days Suga felt uncertain on whether the castle would be standing by night. _

_ For the sanity of all involved, it was mutually agreed that the best method to save the kingdom was to keep both of the boys too busy to burn it down. _

_ The sad truth there was that sometimes there really wasn’t much to do. _

_. “Why does Hinata get to learn about poisons while I’m stuck here doing paperwork?” _

_ Tsukishima’s glare was caustic. Takeda was immune by virtue of repeat exposure. _

_ Takeda hummed, quill still scribbling away at his notes. “Because Keishin already taught you poisons last week while Hinata was working on his scaling exercises.” _

_ “So?” Tsukishima crossed his arms. “I’m going to be the Jack--I need to know loads more stuff than Hinata. He’ll probably just forget it anyway. I should be there, too. For review?” _

_ Takeda glanced up. “Do you need a review?” _

_ Tsukishima stayed silent mutinously. _

_ Takeda shook his head, biting down on a laugh. “Come over here, then, you can help me look these over. You should, actually, you’ll have to deal with this too one day.” _

_ “What is it?” _

_ “Why don’t you come look for yourself?” _

_ Curiosity was always the most surefire way to get Tsukishima to do anything. _

_ “Fine.” Tsukishima sat in the spare desk chair, back straight not unlike a cat that had deigned to grace others. Then, he glanced down at the papers and his face fell, worry flicking through it and transforming him back into a ten year old boy. “You’re retiring?” _

_ “Not yet,” Takeda said. “But, one day soon. I’d be surprised if it wasn’t my time within the next ten years.” _

_ “But,” Tsukishima blinked rapidly, “you can’t, though. Why would you?” _

_ Takeda laughed. “Trust me, Kei, by then, you’ll probably be ready to see me go. You’ll need to take your own place as Jack.” Takeda’s smile was wistful. “It’s not for a while, though. My time as a Suit may be shorter than most; but, I can’t say I’ll regret it when I know who’s replacing me.” _

_ Tsukishima was still frowning. _

_ “It’s not for a while,” Takeda reassured again. “Still, it never hurts to make plans early.” _

_ He gently eased the paperwork to nudge Tsukishima’s hand and Tsukishima finally broke out of his stupor. _

_ And huffed, of course, because even a worried Tsukishima wasn’t the type to show it for long. _

_ “I can’t ever imagine retiring,” Tsukishima grumbled. He paused before grimacing. “Actually, scratch that, I don’t think I  _ can  _ retire. Probably ever. Hinata would be hopeless without me.” _

_ Takeda’s quill paused. “Spades’ Aces don’t normally retire.” _

_ Tsukishima blinked, then, he actually thought about that for a second and snorted. “That makes sense. They must all be like Hinata, then. With the--” he waved his hand to try to approximate the all encompassing, blinding force of nature that was Hinata on an average morning, “--being annoyingly energetic.” _

_ After all, if there was one person that had suffered through Hinata enough to know that the headlong determination really was seemingly endless, it was his roommate and longest companion. _

_ Yes, now that he considered it, Tsukishima couldn’t imagine someone like Hinata ever conceding enough to retire. The idea seemed strange in and of itself. _

_ Fine, then, Tsukishima supposed he himself would never retire either. For the good of the Suit and because Hinata was an idiot alone. _

_ Takeda was watching him now. “That’s not exactly what I meant.” _

_ Tsukishima was back to being confident and relaxed now that he had a firm idea on how his life would go. “What did you mean, then?” _

_ “The Ace of Spades,” Takeda cleared his throat, tone going soft, “they normally don’t get the chance to retire.” _

_ Tsukishima stopped. _

_ “They tend to die in service,” Takeda admitted. “Aces are a dangerous job, Kei, the Ace of Spades most of all. They’re our first defense and our best offense. You know this. I know you remember the histories.” _

_ Tsukishima remembered practically everything. Of course, he remembered stories about the wars and minor insurrections, political rivals turned martial, the death tolls associated with each.  _

_ He’d never put together how many of those fatalities ended up being Spades’ Ace. _

_ Why would he? It simply made sense that the Ace of Spades would always be a center of the stories--the warning, like a candle in a mine to signal danger. Who remembered that the candle itself was the first to die? _

_ Tsukishima felt a feeling like a chasm clench down in his gut. It wasn’t something he’d ever felt before and he brought a hand to his middle, confused. _

_ Takeda had set aside the paperwork, watching his ward. He stood, motioning for Tsukishima to follow. “Come with me, Kei. Will you? There’s something I want to show you.” _

_ Tsukishima followed him--silent for once as he was still preoccupied with the churning sensation that was starting to scrape up and grab at his chest. _

_ They stopped in the northwest courtyard. _

_ The northwest courtyard was the most austere part of all the palace. Closely tended bushes of white flowers along the borders and a single slab of black marble standing in eternal guard in the center, one side flowing with water down to a fountain while the other side was etched with solid gold names. _

_ The courtyard always felt too silent. _

_ Hinata and Tsukishima avoided it mostly since the entire place held that melancholic feel of things better left undisturbed. _

_ That didn’t mean Tsukishima wasn’t aware of it. _

_ He regained some of his normal exasperation, frowning up at Takeda. “I’ve been here before!” _

_ “I know,” Takeda remained patient, “but, have you ever really looked?” _

_ “It’s the Ace’s Wall,” Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “What’s there to look at? It’s just a bunch of names of Spades’ former Aces. If I wanted to know more about them, I’d go to the library, not a fountain.” _

_ Takeda sighed, walking up to the marble slab and running a finger across the final engraving. _

_ Udai Tenma, the Ace before Hinata--presumed dead on an unknown mission almost a decade ago.  _

_ It was the first story Keishin told them. _

_ Takeda gave a small smile. “A known spy is a dead spy. That’s Spades’ way. Our Aces may not get any recognition while they’re alive; but, after, we make sure the entire kingdom knows about their sacrifice. It’s the only way they let us show gratitude.” _

_ He looked at Tsukishima. “But, that’s not the only reason why I brought you here. Count the names.” _

_ Tsukishima looked back up at them. _

_ There were too many. More than there should be, even for the seven centuries since Card’s founding.  _

_ There were dates there, too. Tsukishima could do the math. The normal reign of a Cards monarch could span seventy-five years, given the right magic and luck. Anything under fifty was seen as unusual.  _

_ Tsukishima read the years. 54 years...46….22….34….44….53….11? _

_ 11 years? _

_ Hinata had technically already claimed his title for three years, what was another eight? They’d barely be eighteen, how could-- _

_ Tsukishima shook the thought off quickly. _

_ None of these people were Hinata.  _

_ Hinata was different. He just was. He wouldn’t just die like that, not after just a couple decades.  _

_ After all, Tsukishima was here, too. The role of the Ace of Spades as a spy may have dated back to the fourth reign, back to the Second Nohebi Independence War and over five hundred years ago now, but that had always meant the Ace of Spades working alone. The Ace of Spades wasn’t a solitary figure anymore; Tsukishima had already changed that. _

_ He nodded to himself, looking up at Takeda. “When’s the last time an Ace of Spades has retired?” _

_ Takeda blinked. “The….I believe it was the seventh reign?” _

_ Alright, so a bit over three hundred years ago.  _

_ Tsukishima could beat that. _

_ With that, Tsukishima looked back at the slab and stared it down like the wall was looking back at him. He thought the words.  _

_ And the words were not a promise; for promises could be broken. _

_ Instead, at all of ten years old, Tsukishima made a declaration--even if it was only to himself. _

_ Hinata would not die, not like that, not on a mission, not young. _

_ Tsukishima wouldn’t allow it. _

_ No. Hinata would be the first Ace of Spades in three hundred years that retired, even if Tsukishima had to drag him into it. _

_ The idea that this was not a vow that was in his power to make never occurred to Tsukishima Kei. If it had, he would have found the notion ridiculous.  _

_ After all, Tsukishima Kei was very certain about his place in the world and how everyone else was supposed to fit around it. Hinata was supposed to be there and so he would. _

_ It would be far too many years until Tsukishima truly learned what it meant to have something outside his reach, sitting in a place of Diamonds in a cold that had nothing to do with winter. _

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

When the towers and simple stone that made up Spades’ castle finally came into view, Tsukishima felt the tension in his shoulders drop, taking in the steady walls like a breath of fresh air.

If forced to admit it, Tsukishima would say that it was really good to be back home.

As usual, Suga was less reserved. “I missed this place.”

Kageyama nodded, rolling his shoulders and probably already thinking about shutting himself back in his own tower with his veritable army of books.

The gates opened and the familiar sight of the main courtyard came into view. Suga turned back to them. “Of course, someone will still need to check into the normal castle maintenance. See if we missed any summons, meet with the staff….oh, maybe, see what the knights have been up to….”

“Suga!” The voice of Daichi, the Knights Captain rang out excitedly.

Suga smiled. “Luckily, I believe I can take that burden.”

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “Just go.”

Suga stepped out of the carriage, a hand already reached out to help him down.

“Welcome back,” Daichi cleared his throat, “Your Highness.”

“It’s good to be back,” Suga smile hinted towards coy, “there’s a few sights I’ve dearly been missing.”

Daichi grinned. “The gardens have been kept ready for your visit, My Queen.”

“Ah, those, too, I suppose.” Suga looped his arms with the captain, who’d already started to blush. “Would you mind accompanying me? If you have the time.”

“I’ll always have the time.” And then, both of them were gliding along like they hadn’t left a number of unwilling victims in their wake.

Tsukishima looked at his only companion and made a gagging face. “Sickening.”

The move startled out a laugh from Kageyama and, then, both King and Jack looked at each other unsure of who was more annoyed with the moment of almost friendship.

“Ugh, I’ll be in my office, then.” Tsukishima dropped out of the carriage. “Try not to irritate more people than usual, won’t you?”

Kageyama snorted. “You first.”

Tsukishima merely smirked.

As painful as it was to admit, he at times felt something approaching fondness for his king. He would still rather dive headfirst into sewage than say it and luckily he was sure Kageyama felt the same way.

He was stopped barely a second after he made it to the hall.

“Tsuki!” Yachi clutched a familiar book to her chest and her eyes were wide, scanning everywhere. “Have you seen Hinata?”

And instantly Tsukishima knew exactly what this was about. “He’s not here. Come with me.”

Yachi met his eyes, reading everything she could in them before her lips straightened out into a firm line and she nodded. “Your office?”

Tsukishima nodded, leading them both along. 

When he shut the door, locking all the bolts before checking the single window, he turned to Yachi. “That’s Hinata’s notes, aren’t they?”

“How’d you know,” she asked, passing the book over as he gestured it.

“Because he told me,” Tsukishima muttered.

He opened the book to find lines of remarkably detailed notes, all transcribed in one of their codes that it would take months before anyone outside a Jack could break. Tsukishima always forgot that Hinata actually could be thorough in his mission reports whenever he felt it was important. Normally, he just counted on Tsukishima to choose the details to prioritize.

Reading through any mission that Hinata did without him, even knowing the cause, still left a bitter taste on his tongue.

He’d read them thoroughly anyway, just in case there was something he’d missed.

“Tsuki?”

Tsukishima jerked, smoothing the movement away in the last second like he hadn’t forgotten he wasn’t alone in his focus on the notes. 

That wasn’t….he was normally more prepared than that.

And Yachi was one of the few people who would see it.

“Tsuki,” she said softly, “where’s Hinata? He didn’t come back with the rest of you, did he? And all the other spies left, too. And, then, even when Noya came back, he said he couldn’t say anything and I should ask you. Tsuki, what’s happening.”

Tsukishima sighed, reluctantly setting aside the notes to turn to his assistant. She was right. If there was one person who deserved to know, it was her.

“Hinata’s in Futakuchi,” he told her bluntly. 

“He’s….,” she blinked, “wait, he’s  _ where?  _ Tsuki, the Futakuchi Islands are closed off! Why is Hinata there?”

“Well, you know him. He lives for surprises.”

Yachi narrowed her eyes.

Tsukishima relented. “It’s a very long and complicated story. I’ll tell you when I brief the other spies tonight. The main point is it looks like he’ll be stuck there for awhile so we’ll want to start finding his excuses on why our main manservant is gone. I’m thinking sick relative, you?”

“Hinata doesn’t have any relatives,” Yachi said.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Tsukishima said wryly. “You never know when a hidden brother’s going to pop up these days, trust me.”

Yachi gave him a weird look.

“Later,” he promised.

She rocked back on her heels. “It could work. I’ll make it work.”

“Your skills in trickery are much appreciated.” Tsukishima turned back to his book.

Yachi sat down opposite his desk and Tsukishima internally stifled a sigh that his dear assistant had adopted her privacy social cues entirely from Hinata. 

“He’s never been gone this long,” she said softly.

“He has,” he corrected. “....not often, but a bit longer than this.”

Never without some form of contact.

Yachi nodded. “It’s going to be  _ a lot _ longer this time, though, isn’t it?”

Tsukishima didn’t bother answering.

“I don’t like this,” she decided. “What if he needs help?”

Tsukishima looked up. “He’ll manage.”

Yachi smiled, reaching out to lay a hand on his. “Thank you, Tsuki. I’m sorry, I haven’t even asked yet. Are you doing okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be,” Tsukishima demanded, sharper than intended, and he had to remind himself that Yachi hadn’t been there at the festival, didn’t know yet there was a time that they’d thought Hinata was  _ never  _ coming back.

….so, why had she asked.

“You’ve never worked without Hinata this long either,” she said. “that has to be hard, too. For both of you.”

Tsukishima leaned back, hand coming to rub at the back of his neck before he caught himself.

He sighed instead, offering Yachi a smirk. “Honestly, for me, it probably just means less paperwork.”

Yachi’s comforting hand moved up to whack his arm. “Be nice!”

Yes, it was really good to be home.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“I don’t need a sweater, Yaku! It’s an  _ island!” _

“Islands get cold, too!”

Kenma was currently watching the Diamond’s national pastime of Yaku and Lev arguing over whatever came up on any given occasion.

“Not that cold,” Lev whined. “Come on, I’m not showing up in a sweater! What if the other pirates laugh at me!?”

“Then, you can mock them right back for not having appropriate winter clothes,” Yaku said sensibly, stuffing the sweater back in Lev’s travel bag. “We’re  _ not  _ losing our Mage because of hypothermia!”

“But, you’re not packing one for Kuroo,” Lev complained.

Yaku shrugged. “Kuroo can take care of himself.”

“And I can’t?”

“Kuroo fell out of a window and survived,” Yaku narrowed his eyes. “Did  _ you _ fall out of a window and survive?”

Lev spluttered. “I could! I totally could!”

“Better not risk it,” Yaku shoved in a scarf before turning to Kenma. “Think Hinata wants anything?”

“Actually, the islands should be fairly warm this time of year,” Kenma said.

“Ah.” Yaku stuffed in mittens regardless.

“Yaku!” Lev pouted. “What are you--my mom?”

Kenma didn’t bother saving Lev from the roundhouse kick that followed.

After, while Lev was laying on the ground and fake moaning, Yaku stepped over him to look down at Kenma’s papers. “What is that?”

“Kuroo’s papers,” Kenma said.

“Oh, need any help?”

Kenma shook his head, debating on whether he should add anything before deciding he had to. “We need someone to handle the knight’s schedule.”

Lev popped back up, miraculously healed from prior complaints. “Huh, I didn’t think about that. Yeah, I guess with Kuroo gone, there’s a lot of his work that still needs someone.”

“I can handle it,” Kenma said, quiet but firm.

“Um,” Lev glanced at Yaku.

“That’s a lot of work on top of your normal work, Kenma,” Yaku said. “If you need someone to split it with, you know you can just ask me. Or some of the knights, actually.”

Kenma shook his head. “I need you to handle Lev’s work.”

“....Alright.”

He pretended not to see Lev and Yaku exchanging another glance. They were just worried about him. Honestly, Kenma was used to it. Over the years, he’d found that being quiet while often letting him escape attention, only drew more intensity when he was suddenly shoved in the spotlight.

Especially when Kuroo wasn’t there to translate.

It made everything seem more fragile--a wrong step away from fracture.

Kenma turned back to the papers.

But, the second truth was this: Kenma had never been good at controlling what other people thought of him. He wasn’t going to get better at it now.

So, instead, he’d decided to focus on what he could do.

….and Bokuto had been right as well.

Sometimes, words were necessary.

He looked up at his Jack and Queen. “I know what I’m doing, trust me.”

“We do,” Yaku promised. “Of course, we do.”

Lev nodded eagerly.

Kenma nodded back before he eyed Lev’s bag critically.

He turned up to Yaku. “You forgot a jacket.”

Yaku’s smile went sharp and Lev’s face dropped.

“KENMA! NO, WHY?! I THOUGHT WE HAD A MOMENT!”

Kenma slipped out of the room in the proceeding chaos, Kuroo’s papers held tight under his arms. He had work to do.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Tsukishima listened to the flow of falling water, notebook out in front of him as he poured through everything Hinata had been up to in the past month.

His head felt clearer than it had in a week, centered and focused. 

He didn’t know whether to attribute it to being back home or finally having all the information they had laid out in front of him.

Hinata had done good work digging up what he could. But, it was Tsukishima’s job to piece them together.

He needed to order the spies to track down any leads on the Hawks and his brother.

That was the starting point.

Bloodmagic or no bloodmagic, when it came down to it, Tsukishima’s task was always the same--track down information, limit the opponent’s options, formulate a plan, and rely on Hinata to carry it out.

There was no reason he should be able to do that now while Hinata was gone.

“Tsuki?”

Tsukishima looked up and smiled, the honest one he only gave to one person. “Find any good books?”

Home. 

Yamaguchi brightened, perching on the bench next to him. “We did! Tsuki, there’s one on crop formation that dates back to the second reign--the  _ second reign!  _ Can you believe it? Of course, the script will need a bit of translation but, really, it shouldn’t be too much trouble.” His smile went sly. “We also got a few new mystery books in….if you want to see if they’re realistic enough, of course.”

“Hush,” Tsukishima bumped his shoulder, bemoaning not for the first time that Hinata had let slip his fascination with truly horrendous short mystery novels. The kind which, consequently, Yamaguchi had made sure the library stocked the newest ones.

Yamaguchi leaned against his shoulder. “How was the festival?”

“Horrible,” Tsukishima said truthfully.

There was no one in this particular courtyard to hear, anyway.

Yamaguchi lifted his head to frown. “That bad?”

“Worse.”

“Does it….,” Yamaguchi dropped his voice lower, “does this have anything to do with why Hinata’s ‘visiting relatives’? There’s been some rumors; but, Tsuki, is he--”

“He’s fine,” Tsukishima cut him off before Yamaguchi could start to panic.

Technically, only Suit members, their spouses, and those directly involved were allowed to know the Ace of Spades’ true identity. Practically, it was a lot harder to explain why Hinata was standing in his office, dressed in black with a minor arrow wound, and Tsukishima’s new boyfriend decided to surprise him for breakfast.

Yamaguchi sighed in relief.

“He’s fine,” Tsukishima repeated, “but, he’ll be away for a while. It’s better not to ask for details.”

Yamaguchi nodded.

“Wait, what do you mean by rumors,” Tsukishima asked.

Yamaguchi frowned. “Just a few things I heard from around town. There’s a silly rumor that Diamonds tried to attack us. Don’t worry, most people know it’s ridiculous; but, you know how it is. People like to gossip.”

Yes, Tsukishima  _ definitely  _ needed to look into the Hawks more and specifically where they were to spread rumors.

“Ridiculous,” Tsukishima agreed.

Yamaguchi hummed. “So, why are you out here?”

“I didn’t really think about it, truthfully,” Tsukishima said. “It’s quiet, a good place to think.”

“I suppose,” Yamaguchi leaned back against him. “I guess I just always found this place too somber to relax in.”

Tsukishima looked up.

The black marble of the Ace’s Wall was just as silently imposing as it had always been, water enchanted to flow down eternally even in the dead of winter.

Normally, Tsukishima had always hated this place, ever since he was ten years old, it felt like the entire air seemed to be goading him. 

Now….maybe he was getting older.

He found he didn’t mind this courtyard so much, felt his feet walking here unbidden when his office seemed too closed in.

The wall didn’t feel like it was mocking him anymore and Tsukishima no longer could find his instinctive impulse to stare it back down until the stone was the one that bent for him. 

Instead, it just felt like a reminder, soft but just as constant as the cool breeze against bare trees.

Something was changing and Tsukishima no longer believed he could stop it.

He thought it might change him first.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“You’re going to be fine, right?”

Hinata stared at him.

“Don’t give me that look.” Kuroo folded his arms. “Hyakuzawa’s dangerous.”

Hinata continued to stare. “....Yes?”

“And we don’t know who’s on that ship,” Kuroo continued. “King Yudai’s better than his father,  _ sure _ . But, that still doesn’t mean there’s not dissenters. And we don’t know how many in Hyakuzawa that Futakuchi reached out to. For all we know, whoever’s here is working with King Hotaka.  _ Likely  _ even, considering why the fuck else would they be here otherwise.”

“I know?” 

Kuroo glared at him. “All I’m saying is are you sure stalking the carriage of people that  _ probably _ want to kill us through a town of people who  _ may _ want to kill us and to a castle of people that  _ definitely  _ want to kill us is the safest thing to do?”

“Oh.” Hinata paused. “No, it’s not. That’s why I’m doing it. Why?”

Kuroo looked ready to tear his hair out. 

“It’s worth the risk, though.” Hinata grinned. “We need to know who from Hyakuzawa is meeting with the King. We can’t do that sticking back on the ship which means someone needs to go into the capital and track the carriage. And that’s me.”

Kuroo pinched the bridge of his nose. “And what if they are an enemy and you get caught?”

Hinata shrugged. “I don’t know, they’ll probably kill me. Don’t worry about it.”

_ “Don’t worry about it?!” _

“Lots of spies die eventually. It’s always a risk,” Hinata said cheerfully. “All I can do is work to make sure that doesn’t happen. So, yeah, other than that, there’s no point worrying.” 

Kuroo still didn’t look remotely happy.

Hinata had a flash of insight. “Oh….you’re worried about something else, aren’t you?”

“What?” Kuroo jumped. “No! I’m worried about  _ you!  _ Shut up!”

Hinata nodded like Kuroo hadn’t even spoken. “Yeah, it’s  _ definitely  _ something else.” He laid a hand on Kuroo’s shoulder. “Kuroo, no offense, but I’ve done a lot more stuff than hanging out on roofs and breaking into a palace…..like this week even.”

Kuroo ran a hand through his hair, looking frustrated. “Yeah, but I was there for those.”

Hinata thought about that for a moment. Huh, he’d never really thought about how hard it would be to go from being in charge of an entire kingdom’s defense to not protecting anyone.

He cocked his head. “This is about Kenma, isn’t it?”

“No,” Kuroo grimaced. “....maybe a bit.”

“Kenma’s really smart.” Hinata threw out his arms. “Like really,  _ really _ smart! He’s going to be fine!”

“He’s never…,” Kuroo waved the thought off. “Yeah, fine, whatever--you should go if you’re going to get to the market in time to catch the palace carriage.”

He winked. “Make some excuse with Kenji, okay?”

Kuroo shook his head. “They’ve gotta think you’re the weirdest servant ever.”

Yeah….Hinata really needed a better excuse for that. Being stuck on an island and having to plan an assassination  _ with  _ people wasn’t exactly in the Ace of Spades handbook.

Kuroo shoved him forward. “Just don’t fall off a roof or something, okay?”

Hinata grinned. “Quit worrying; I’m good at this.”

And, then, he was finally off

Honestly, and he was definitely never ever telling any of them this ever, the  _ hardest _ thing he’d had to do since being dropped unceremoniously into the Futakuchi waters was….um, well, working with the others.

It wasn’t anything about them, really! The crew and Kuroo and everything was great, just….Hinata was far more used to letting Tsuki give him a list of goals with a vague plan attached and letting Hinata figure out the rest on his own and explain it later. Because, when it got down to it, plans failed and Hinata had always thought his true strengths were in adapting to the situation.

He’d never had to bring others along with him.  _ Or  _ talk about how he was doing it.  _ And  _ somehow doing it without letting it slip that he was the Ace of Spades. And….well, okay maybe, Hinata was just a little bit excited that just for a bit he could only focus on scaling roofs and tracking carriage and figuring out the next step on his own without worrying about what the others would think.

Oh, wow, he was starting to sound like Tsuki. Ugh, Tsuki was never going to let him live this down, was he?

Still, Hinata flipped up easily on one of the taller stone buildings that made the capital market--nicer and larger than what Hinata had seen on any of the smaller islands. The sun had only just started to set and he’d dressed in brown and tans, absently missing his own uniform as he slipped between the shadows of roofs and alleys.

He called up his Ace’s power reflexively, using the extra sharpness in his vision to narrow in on the carriage, marked with the Futakuchi royal seal.

An invited guest

Which means whoever was in that carriage was here because King Hotaka  _ wanted _ them to be, which was probably really bad news for the rest of them.

Hinata held back a sigh. Was it too much to ask to only deal with  _ one  _ foreign rebellion at a time?

He already had to deal with one regicide. He really didn’t want to figure out how to inform King Yudai that one of his nobels was plotting with Futakuchi to overthrow Cards and most likely Hyakuzawa’s new king with it.

And that was if King Yudai didn’t already know.

Hinata didn’t think he would. Sure, he’d only technically met Yudai a few times; but, Hinata was good at reading people. King Yudai wasn’t like his father--he was concerned more about making sure his people were cared for rather than starting wars. None of Futakuchi’s plans seemed like something he’d get involved in.

But, Hinata was also the Ace, which meant looking into all possible threats.

He crouched lightly on a roof, overlooking one of the less crowded side roads. He rubbed his head.

There were too many threats to think about right now.

He wishes he could talk to--

“Lovely afternoon for a rooftop stroll, isn’t it?”

Hinata jumped, grabbing onto the roof before he could fall which would make a very, very embarrassing end of career.

Like the true force of chaos he was, Tendou looked absolutely unbothered by Hinata’s near heart attack.

“What are you doing here,” Hinata hissed out.

“I told you I’m on vacation,” Tendou said lazily. “ _ Buuuuuuut,  _ I’ll admit I got a teensy bit bored. Apparently, I’m not one for book clubs, go figure? Following you seems more fun!”

Hinata shuddered before he could help himself. “A-are you sure?”

“Absolutely!” Tendou beamed. “And we make such a great team! Think about how much I can help you!”

Hinata was. It wasn’t comforting.

He tried for logic instead. “But, I thought you didn’t have all your magic here? Shouldn’t you be in Cards where you can help them more? Or…..or it’s safer?”

Tendou bopped him on the nose and Hinata knew immediately that it was a failing argument.

“Don’t you worry your cute little head over me.” Tendou fluttered his eyelashes. “I’ve still got a little bitty chaos magic that tags along with me. Maybe not enough to blow up an island; but, say….maybe a town square or two? We can test it later if you want?”

“No thanks,” Hinata said blankly.

“Boo!”

There was a roll of wheels coming up and Hinata immediately looked down as the carriage started down the small side street below.

Tendou leaned in next to him. “So, what are we doing?”

“Seeing who from Hyakuzawa is meeting with the Futakuchi king,” Hinata whispered to him. “It may mean Hyakuzawa and Futakuchi are working together.”

Tendou scrunched up his nose. “So, what, you’re just going to follow a carriage around and then try to get into the palace and then hope you hear something?”

“Pretty much.”

The embodiment of chaos pouted. “But, that sounds so tedious. Ew, that’s worse than waiting on ‘Toshi with his gardening!”

“A lot of spy stuff is waiting.” Hinata smiled. “It’s okay, though, I understand if you don’t want to wait around with me. You probably have a lot of important fun things to do, right?”

“Hey, we can make this work,” Tendou slung an arm around his shoulders. “Listen, Shorty--”

“Hinata.”

“There’s no way I’m bothering to remember that,” Tendou said cheerfully. “Anyway, Little Ace,  _ listen-- _ maybe we got off on the wrong foot with all the collapsing a warehouse on you and almost getting you barbecued. But, I want you to know there’s no one else that’s here for you quite like me.”

Tendou drew a hand to his chest, smile going soft. “I’m your Fate, the creator of your country. And I just need you to understand that I’m always going to be here when you need me the most. Sure, I’m on vacation now. But, really-- _ always-- _ I’m here to help you Suits, okay?”

“....Oh.” Hinata hesitated, wondering if maybe the Fate had a point and Hinata was being overly cautious. Fates  _ were  _ supposed to help Cards, after all, and Tendou technically hadn’t let him die yet. “I do know. Thank you.”

Tendou’s smile widened to a grin. “Great. I’m here to give you that final push you need, you know? Like this!”

Tendou snapped and the front wheel of the carriage suddenly broke apart, startling the horses and crashing the entire thing down on the ground.

Hinata barely got a chance to blink before the hand around his shoulders shoved him forward and….

Hinata fell off the roof and into a carriage crash.

No, he’d been right the first time. Fates were trouble.

He had one second to bitterly curse before he was saved from sudden death from the fabric of an awning. 

Hinata landed in a gust of air before he heard the distinctive noise of tearing fabric.

The awning broke under him and he was falling again.

_ “Ooof!” _

The sharpness and warmth that meant human limbs broke his fall and Hinata had the unpleasant realization that the awning had actually been the carriage roof.

He’d…..he’d just fallen off a roof and straight through into the carriage, which meant that the person he landed on was….

“Hinata?”

Hinata tipped his head back to find the bewildered face of Hyakuzawa’s King. “Hey, King Yudai….,” he tried for a smile, “funny meeting you here?”

“What are you doing in Futakuchi,” King Yudai asked, blinking rapidly. “Is it….is it for your Ace stuff?”

Hinata sighed, pulling himself up and looking at the king seriously.

“Actually,” Hinata said, “I need you to answer that first. Why are you in Futakuchi, King Yudai?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! Bit behind on comment replies this time; but, figured ya'll would want the chapter first. Comments should be all answered soon! Until then, please know I appreciate all your support!
> 
> Next Post Date: Nov. 1-2 (I hope. Full honesty, I'm flying practically all day the 2nd and unsure about my wifi. If not the 2nd then pretty much as soon as I can)  
> Update: yep, had a feeling. Midterms and getting ready for a trip hit harder than expected and I need to move my deadlines back a week. Please, please trust me, guys, I would SO MUCH rather be working on this but I gotta. Good news, should only be a week. Next chapter: November 7-8
> 
> With Lev, Yudai Haykuzawa, the Date Tech bunch, Tendou, Hinata, and Kuroo, we finally have our full Futakuchi rebellion crew.
> 
> Always feel free to find me on tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	11. Chapter 11

_11 Years Prior_

_Kuroo was not pouting._

_Sixteen year old Aces did not pout._

_He was brooding--which sounded much more mature and serious._

_“I don’t know why you’re pouting,” Kenma said, curled up in his giant desk chair and surrounded by papers like he always seemed to be lately._

_“I’m brooding, Kenma. It’s very different.”_

_“You knew it would happen” Kenma said even though Kuroo was pretty darn sure he’d said nothing of the sort. He despaired that he was far too used to Kenma just knowing things. “He was the Ace for over seventy years, Kuroo. We’ve only been here for four.”_

_“Well, excuse me, if I thought I had a better chance at winning a duel against a nearly ninety year old,” Kuroo complained without much heat._

_He’d feel worse about the whole thing if the former Ace of Diamonds actually looked his age. There was something about the Cards magic or Marks or Fates or destiny or all of those other complicated things that Queen Nekomata was always smirking and talking in riddles about. Anyway, Cards Suits tended to hold up remarkably well, both mentally and physically._

_Well enough to kick Kuroo’s ass in a duel--laughing and needling all the while._

_Kuroo crossed his arms and_ brooded _._

_At least, it was satisfying that the old geezer couldn’t beat him in archery anymore. Kuroo could still hold that one against him next time he had Kuroo clean up the stables._

_“You lasted longer this time.” Kenma’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “You’ll beat him by the next festival.”_

_Kuroo’s shoulders dropped. “Yeah, maybe….you really think we can’t convince him to stay longer?”_

_Kenma looked up before shrugging in a way that clearly conveyed Kuroo would know better than him._

_“I mean not that…,” Kuroo fumbled with his words. “I guess he deserves the break.”_

_It made sense. Suit members generally didn’t stay for too long after their retirement, especially when there was already someone there to replace them. Diamond’s former Ace had already announced his retirement months before Kuroo and Kenma had even arrived. Staying here for four years after--training Kuroo, keeping up with the knights, forming Diamond’s defense strategies even after Kuroo had already Claimed the title and the duty should have technically fallen to him--was already more than could be expected._

_Magic or not, the old Ace wasn’t as young as he used to be._

_That didn’t mean Kuroo wouldn’t miss him._

_He glanced up to find Kenma frowning-- a startlingly open look that only happened when Kenma wasn’t bothering to hide._

_Kuroo smiled, hefting himself out of his chair to walk around Kenma’s desk and prop himself on the edge._

_“You know,” Kuroo said quietly, reaching out to smooth the wrinkle between Kenma’s brow, “you always make the weirdest expressions when you’re thinking.”_

_Kenma blinked, huffing out something like a smile. “Nekomata said the same thing last week.”_

_“Oh ho, so you’re frowning for him, too?” Kuroo grinned. “I’m hurt, Kenma, here I thought I was special.”_

_“You are,” Kenma said._

_Kuroo leaned in, ignoring the way his blood was pumping faster. “Yeah?”_

_Kenma’s face was passive. “No one has your ego.”_

_Kuroo’s laugh was sudden and abrupt, tossing his head back as he went. “You wound me, My King.”_

_“You’re used to it,” Kenma muttered._

_“You’re going to make the other Aces mock me,” Kuroo teased. “Look at Hearts, Iwaizumi already won a war. Spades has their terrifying assassin Ace that probably has fangs or claws with how Tsukishima keeps talking him up. And then, there’s_ me _,” he held a hand to his chest, “without even my King to talk me up.”_

_Kenma rolled his eyes and made an attempt at turning back to his papers._

_Kuroo wouldn’t let him, not quite yet--not when too much of their time was already being eaten up without quiet nights like this._

_“Come on, give me something, Kenma,” Kuroo whined playfully. “I need compliments.”_

_“Why?”_

_Because now it was a game and Kuroo wasn’t giving in that easy. Kenma looked as distracted from paperwork as Kuroo had gotten him in months._

_“Too feed my big ego, like you said,” he retorted. “Come on, Kenma, it’s practically starving here.”_

_Kenma gave him the most disgruntled face possible and Kuroo’s smile just widened._

_“Well,” he asked and his voice lowered without his permission and Kuroo mentally congratulated himself that at least it didn’t crack. Puberty was a terrible, awful thing. “I’m waiting.”_

_Kenma sighed, shaking his head but finally his eyes landed on Kuroo and he felt them sharpen, focused straight on him._

_And all at once the game faded._

_The easy night air went hot and quiet._

_Kuroo found himself holding his breath, the smirk frozen on his face in a way he was praying still looked natural._

_He became acutely aware of the space held between them--closer that Kenma let anyone else and Kuroo felt suddenly fiercely proud of that fact. That of everyone, Kenma chose to let_ him _in._

_But, now, under the weight of Kenma’s focus, the closeness also felt abruptly terrifying._

_It felt like change. He didn’t know if he liked it yet._

_The room was still and Kuroo’s heart was beating too loud in his ears. And the time felt like it was held on the pinprick of a needle at the same moment that everything felt so overwhelmingly gradual. Like the familiar had suddenly been jarred into something new and Kuroo had missed it._

_So, he did what he always did when he didn’t understand._

_Kenma’s eyes looked almost metallic, like the brass of a compass, in the light of the candles. The same shape and shade Kuroo knew better than his own._

_But, the face was different. He’d let his hair grow longer, more well kept in the care of the palace. Some of the roundness in his face had faded to prominent lines sometime when Kuroo’s voice had started to crack._

_He was the King--not just to Kuroo, anymore, but to a country. And Kuroo would make sure it was one built to love him._

_Kuroo made three realizations, one right after the other, the second before Kenma finally spoke._

_“Thank you,” Kenma said._

_“What,” Kuroo’s voice felt weak and he’d long forgotten what they were supposed to be talking about._

_“For getting me here, for being here.” Kenma shrugged. “For staying with me.”_

_Kuroo’s throat had gone dry. “I’ll always be here.”_

_Kenma looked away. “I know.”_

_Kuroo stared._

I want to kiss you.

I think I’m in love with you.

_And the final realization: Kuroo couldn’t move._

_It was too much at once. Like expecting a stream and getting a waterfall and Kuroo was still struggling to swim. He should….he should probably….say or do or…_

_But, Kenma wasn’t looking at him and, for once, Kuroo couldn’t read what he was thinking. And before everything, before Aces and Kings, Kuroo had built his life on one solid fact: he would always wait for Kenma._

_And, so, he couldn’t move._

_Instead, he cleared his throat. “You know, I don’t think that counted as a compliment.”_

_“Your hair defies physics,” Kenma shot back. “That’s scientifically fascinating.”_

_“KENMA!”_

  
  
  
  


\-------

Kuroo was pouting.

He was a twenty-seven year old Ace, dang it! And he was serious and mature enough to say that he could pout if he wanted to!

“Ugh, he’s brooding again,” Kenji complained, walking onto the deck with Aone at his side.

“It’s not--” Kuroo glared. “Shut up, I’m not brooding.”

Kenji scrunched up his nose. “Aone, I’m way too judgey for this _and_ I’ve already tried. You fix it.” He blinked. “Where’s the short one?”

“Hinata went to the town,” Kuroo shrugged, “think it was something about food.”

That was a normal servant excuse, right?

Kenji shook his head. “Your servant is really, really weird.”

And, then, Kenji turned on his heel and abruptly walked away before Kuroo could even argue.

Aone and Kuroo both stared at each other.

“I’m not brooding,” Kuroo said firmly.

It was pouting, thank you.

Aone said nothing.

They continued to stare at each other.

Kuroo thought, not for the first time, that this was the difference between quiet and stoic. 

People called Kenma stoic--which was ridiculous, of course, because Kenma _always_ gave his opinions. Sure, it might not be out loud; but, it was obvious. It was in the way he could give a single flat look and Lev would suddenly find very pressing magic concerns to do halfway across the castle. The way his shoulders would relax when Yaku went into a rant about the latest research the Universities were doing. It was how he would smile sometimes, not hidden at all, when Kuroo saw him.

Kuroo didn’t know how anyone could be called stoic when Kenma could make the whole room stand in wait just with a tilt of his lips.

Aone, meanwhile, was a fucking brick wall.

And as Kuroo wasn’t a _psychic_ \--like Hinata and Kenji and the rest of the freaking ship apparently were--he had no clue what the blank wall stare wanted him to do.

“Um,” he started eloquently.

Aone continued to stare.

Kuroo started to sweat, not that he’d admit it for the world. “I think heart to hearts usually mean two people talking.” He groaned. “Not that this is a heart to heart. We don’t need a heart to heart, okay? I’m just, uh…”

“Brooding.” Aone nodded.

“Yes. Wait, no,” Kuroo grit his teeth. “I’m just kinda worried about my kingdom, alright? That’s a perfectly normal thing to worry about right now, got it? And nothing we need to talk about. Fates, I’m _used to_ making defense plans in my spare time. Being worried about them now is nothing different, right?”

Aone stared.

“Right,” Kuroo answered for him. “So, okay, we’re good.”

Kenma would be fine. He had Yaku and the rest of the Diamond knights and….and everyone except Kuroo. Kenma said he would be fine and Kenma had never been wrong about the really important things. Kenma was fine.

This wasn’t about Kuroo.

It wasn’t….

Abruptly, Kuroo focused on something else.

Where by the Fates was _Hinata_ already?

He frowned out over the railing, watching the town.

And because Aone might actually be psychic, he finally deigned to speak. “Hinata?”

“Yeah,” Kuroo frowned. “He should have been back by now.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

King Yudai blinked back at him, still looking utterly confused.

Hinata really hoped they could handle this simply--just a nice conversation between a guy riding in his carriage and the other guy that had broken through the ceiling to land on top of him.

Alright, so, the simple part of this conversation may already be doomed.

Still, Hinata would rather not have Yudai as an enemy. He liked him.

Hinata sighed, offering up an encouraging smile. “Why are you in Futakuchi, Your Majesty?”

Yudai blinked again. “I was invited.”

“By who,” Hinata pressed.

“King Hotaka and Queen Maemi.” King Yudai frowned. “We’re supposed to be negotiating reopening Futakuchi’s trade borders. Did they invite Cards, too?”

“Uh, not exactly.” Hinata bit his lip.

Why was Futakuchi opening its borders now? Was it a trap or--”

“....Hinata?”

Hinata looked up to find Yudai’s cheeks lightly red and Hinata realized all at once that he was still kinda sitting half in the king’s lap.

“Oh, sorry,” Hinata shifted away, smiling. “That’s better, right?”

“Um….” Yudai’s blush darkened. “So, why are you in--”

The uproar from the carriage crash finally settled around them with the sounds of guards at the door.

Yudai’s eyes widened, looking at Hinata. “You’re not supposed to be here.”

“Cover for me,” Hinata asked. 

The door opened before he got an answer.

“Your Majesty,” the Futakuchi guard bowed low, “we apologize, the wheel was apparently weak and we--”

He stopped, finally noticing Hinata. “Who--”

Hinata fell into legitimately the easiest role he’d had in weeks.

 _“Finally,”_ he huffed, gesturing to the falling fabric, “your shoddy carriage could have gotten our King injured! Is this the kind of so-called hospitality we should expect from the Futakuchi Islands?”

The guard’s eyes widened. “What--”

“And don’t think we didn’t notice how long it took you to check on King Yudai,” Hinata continued, unheeded. “It’s wonderful to know that if this had been an assassination attempt, you’d leave our king to defend himself for who knows how long.”

The lead guard still seemed apparently dumbstruck and the second piped up from behind him. “Wait, who are you?”

Hinata adopted his best sneer and looked down his nose at him. “I’m King Yudai’s royal manservant and, _apparently,_ our kingdom’s last line of defense since we can’t count on Futakuchi’s own guards.”

“No, we--,” the lead guard bowed again to King Yudai, “you can definitely count on us, Your Majesty.”

King Yudai looked back impassively, clearly letting Hinata handle it.

The second guard was still staring at Hinata. “When did you get here?”

Hinata raised a brow. “The same time as our King. Don’t tell me you didn’t notice an entire _person_?”

“No, no, of course, we did,” the lead guard grabbed his subordinate’s shoulder steering him away. “Apologies, Your Majesty, he was just confused. Of course, we knew your manservant would be riding with you.”

Hinata tapped his fingers. “Though not exactly ‘riding’ at the moment. Will we get to the palace by dinner or should we expect to starve?”

The lead guard blushed deeply. “We’re sending for another carriage immediately. I’ll insure it personally.”

“See that you do,” Hinata said crisply.

The lead guard nodded quickly and, then, the door shut behind him.

Hinata turned to Yudai and grinned, letting his mask drop.

“That was amazing,” Yudai said, still looking stunned.

“Thank my brother,” Hinata said. “I got _really_ good at imitating him when we were kids.”

And, then, Hinata frowned. “King Yudai, where are your own guards?”

“Oh.” Yudai looked uncomfortable. “They stayed behind at the ship.”

Hinata sat back. “You shouldn’t be guarded just by a foreign country’s knights. It’s not safe.”

Especially not guards loyal to the Futakuchi king.

“Ah, well,” Yudai looked at Hinata, “honestly, there weren’t enough of them to guard both me and the ship, so, I volunteered to go alone.” 

Hinata blinked. Hyakuzawa was a large country--roughly the same size as all of the Card kingdoms together, dwarfing any of the kingdoms alone--they should _at least_ have enough men to guard their king.

Yudai’s smile was small. “This trip is kind of a secret.” He checked the windows, making sure here was no one around before leaning in. “You know how Hyakuzawa can be. Kingship is hereditary, sure, but the strongest contender is always supposed to take the throne.” He sighed. “My father was one of twelve children--he _killed_ two of his sibling to become king.” He gestured to himself. “Faced with that, inheriting the throne from a heart attack isn’t exactly impressive.”

Hinata frowned. “How bad is it?”

“The people are still supporting me,” Yudai said, a faint pleased tone echoing through it. “I replaced my father’s top advisors so I can trust most of them.” The smile dropped. “The old advisors went to my uncles, along with a number of the noble families.” He grimaced. “They’re hoping if they get enough support with the nobles, they can convince me to cede the crown to one of my uncles. But, even if they do, I’ll refuse. The people of Futakuchi need someone to listen to them, too, and my uncles won’t.” He looked at Hinata. “I can’t leave my people with someone like that.”

Hinata nodded firmly. “Of course, you can’t. You’re their king.”

“Exactly.” Yudai smiled at him. “And the thing is I don’t even think the nobles hate my plans. They just think I’m weak and don’t want to throw their support behind a king they don’t think will last another year. I need something to show them that I can hold on to the crown long term.”

Hinata paused, thinking about the situation and what he could offer. “Maybe Cards could--”

Yudai was already shaking his head. “No, there’s enough speculation about what happened at the Summer Festival already.” He saw Hinata’s look. “It’s _just_ speculation, don’t worry. Without my support, it can’t move to anything further and everyone but my father’s strongest supporters believe our alliance with Cards is a good thing.” 

Hinata relaxed slightly; the last thing Cards needed was a brewing war with Hyakuzawa on top of everything else.

“I need a win on my own terms,” Yudai said firmly. “Something like returning trade with Futakuchi and negotiating an alliance.” He waved a hand to the carriage. “When I got the letter, I had to take it. Even if it was a risk.”

Yudai grimaced again. “I left most of my advisors and guards to keep the castle. If my uncles find out I’m gone too long, I don’t _want_ to know what they’ll try.” He finally looked up at Hinata. “But, why are you here, Hinata?”

“It’s….it’s kind of a long story.” Hinata winced. “I think there’s a bigger problem right now.” He sighed. “I don’t think King Hotaka invited you here just to talk trade deals.”

“What do you mean,” Yudai asked.

“Futakuchi’s starting a war against Cards,” Hinata said bluntly. “And they want Hyakuzawa to win it.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“Great, excellent,” Tsukishima drawled. “I’m so glad, we can have meetings like this just to confirm we all have exactly nothing. Should I make tea?”

“Yes, please, that would be lovely.” Suga smiled. “Add some lemon to mine.”

Tsukishima glared. “I was kidding.”

“Oh, so, you’re not making me tea,” Suga said, sounding disappointed, and Tsukishima found himself moving instinctively to the tea stand without conscious approval.

Fates, he had to figure out how Suga did that.

When he handed off the cup to Suga, the other man finally decided to answer. “We only just got back and we’re researching an entire lost branch of magic. It takes time, Tsukishima, you know that.”

Tsukishima did; which is why he immediately gave up on interrogating Suga and turned to a debatable easier victim. “What about the books you were talking about?”

Kageyama grunted, nose tucked between old journals. “I’m looking.”

“Can you look _faster_?”

“No.”

Tsukishima hated his Suit and was officially moving to fucking Clubs or something.

“And how’s your search into Akiteru and the Hawks going,” Suga questioned mildly.

“Terrible,” Tsukishima said. “I’ve got all the spies out hunting down leads with Yachi managing and even Tadashi checking in with the palace staff. All we know for certain is that the rumors about our Ace being killed are moving _much_ faster than they should which probably means we’ve got Hawks hidden somewhere in the city to spread rumors.”

“That means they’re close,” Kageyama said. “Can you catch one?”

“Maybe.” Tsukishima rubbed the back of his neck. “Tracking the start of a rumor is like catching smoke and our best option for teasing apart Spades’ gossip network is currently in Futakuchi.”

“They can’t hide forever,” Suga said.

“They don’t need to,” Tsukishima said. “Just hide long enough that the people start to believe them over us, which will happen soon enough unless we give them reason not to. Not to mention their own spy network--that they have to have if they were able to get to Kuroo as fast as they were.” He grit his teeth. “I hate spy networks.”

Kageyama gave him a look.

“I hate _other people’s_ spy networks,” Tsukishima corrected. “Especially when they’re competent.”

Kageyama rolled his eyes and Tsukishima glared back. Hinata _probably_ didn’t chose to fall in love with their king just to annoy Tsukishima; but, somehow Tsukishima wasn’t putting it past either of them.

Life was hard when the entire world was set up to spite him.

“What about Akiteru,” Suga asked.

Tsukishima shrugged. “If intelligence is genetic, he’s hiding himself away as far as he possibly can. Why?”

“It’s strange,” Suga said. “Hinata said he claimed he was doing this for you, right? He doesn’t seem like the type to hide away now.”

“Why not? He hid away for the last two decades,” Tsukishima retorted. “Maybe we’ll get lucky and he will again.”

“He’s your brother, Kei,” Suga said. “You have to be a bit curious.”

“Curious, yes.” Tsukishima’s eyes narrowed. “But, he’s barely my brother.” He stood up, finally giving up on this particular conversation. “And if he knows me at all, he’ll stay away.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Yudai took a deep breath. “So, Futakuchi is trying to attack Cards?”

Hinata nodded. “Yeah.”

“And they’re using an insurgency group to do it plus actual _bloodmagic_ that was supposed to be wiped out years ago,” Yudai said, increasingly tense.

“Exactly.”

“And they tried to kill you and Diamond’s Ace; but, instead, you just ended up here in Futakuchi?”

“Pretty much--there was....uh, kind of more to it.”

“And, now, you think King Hotaka invited _me_ here so they could re-establish the deal they had with my father and try to take over Cards?”

“Yes,” Hinata said firmly. 

Yudai sat back in the new carriage and stared straight ahead. “I….I think I really want to curse now, sorry.”

Hinata bit down on a probably inappropriate laugh. King Yudai really was just too polite sometimes. “Go ahead.”

“Fuck,” Yudai swore.

Hinata nodded. “Yeah, that kind of sums it up.”

Yudai scrubbed a hand over his face. “What are we supposed to do now? I’m already on my way to the palace; I can’t just not go to the meeting.”

“Well….not to be pushy,” Hinata said, “but, I’d really, really appreciate it if you _didn’t_ accept the deal to attack Cards.”

Yudai gave him a startled look which Hinata took to be the soft spoken version of _Obviously._ So, that was at least one worry off his back.

“You need to get out of here quickly,” Hinata said bluntly. “As far as we know, King Hotaka doesn’t know Kuroo and I survived. He doesn’t know we’re here and he _definitely_ doesn’t know you and I have talked.” He sighed. “Yudai, you don’t have to have anything to do with this. Just tell him you can’t make any firm alliance until you talk to your advisors and get back to Hyakuzawa. Things are about to get dangerous here.”

“What do you mean?” Yudai frowned. “What about you?”

“Don’t worry about me; we’ve got a plan.” Hinata winced. “And it’s sorta something you’re safer not knowing.”

It was already going to be suspicious enough if King Hotaka suddenly lost power while Yudai knew Hinata was here; he’d rather have at least some plausible deniability. And not have him know about Kenji yet.

“I have to worry about it,” Yudai argued back. “I can’t just _leave._ ”

Hinata frowned. “You really can. Listen, I’ll still be with you when you get to the palace--it’s not like I can really disappear now that they saw me. I can watch your back and make sure you get safely back to your ship. Then, you just need to get past the Iron Wall.”

“No, I mean--,” Yudai shook his head. “Cards is Hyakuzawa’s _ally_. You stood by us even after my father almost threw us into war. I can’t just leave you to fight on your own when I know you’re in danger.” Yudai’s jaw set. “That’s not the kind of country Hyakuzawa is, it’s not the type of King I want to be.”

Hinata stared at him. “You….you want to stay in Futakuchi and help _us_?”

Yudai nodded.

“Yudai,” Hinata said seriously, “you don’t understand. This is going to be dangerous. There’s a thousand ways this could go wrong and most of them would be a political nightmare. Your country _will_ find out you’re here. You can’t get out of that. What are they going to say about their King overthrowing Futakuchi’s monarchy.”

Yudai’s smile was faint, almost amused. “Well, they won’t say I’m weak.”

Hinata gaped at him.

“Hyakuzawa isn’t Cards, Hinata,” Yudai said, smile dropping. “Over the past seven centuries, we’ve been the instigators for almost every war.” He grimaced. “I don’t like that. I’m trying to change that. But, the fact remains that the Hyakuzawan nobles are used to their king being involved in other country’s politics. They’ll see it as a sign of strength--especially if it’s successful.”

Yudai sighed. “Besides, I know you. You wouldn't be doing this if you didn’t have to _or_ if you didn’t have another plan laid out to ensure Futakuchi would be at least mostly alright.” He looked at Hinata. “I trust you. That’s what an alliance is supposed to be about, right?”

Hinata laid his head in his hands and groaned. “Kuroo is going to kill me. Crap, _Kenji_ is going to kill me.”

“Who’s Kenji,” Yudai asked.

“He’s a pirate.”

“....we’re working with pirates?”

“You’ll find out, trust me.” Hinata released a breath. “Okay, new plan, we’re breaking into the palace.”

“But, we’re already invited,” Yudai said.

“Exactly.” Hinata grinned. “That’s the best kind of breaking in.”

By the time the carriage pulled into the palace, Hinata had already explained the plan.

The palace was just as impressive in the full light of day as it had been at sunset. Large billowing flags hung like sails around the bleached wood with shadows casting the carvings into brilliant relief.

“Wow,” Yudai breathed out.

“I know,” Hinata said. “You’ll be fine in the meeting, right?”

In the brightness of the castle, Yudai looked suddenly uneasy.

“I’m a really bad liar,” he confessed.

“I hate it, too, actually. So, don’t lie.” He patted down Yudai’s collar, playing a proper manservant for once to make sure the Hyakuzawan King still looked presentable after the carriage crash. He grinned, remembering what Ukai had once said. “The best spies aren’t about talking, they’re about listening. Just try to take it easy, okay?”

Yudai gave a small smile.

The same guards as before opened the carriage door, all nervously bowing as if waiting for either Yudai or Hinata to comment.

Oops, okay, Hinata might have been a bit too good with his Tsuki impression.

“Right this way, Your Majesty.” Hinata got out first to help Yudai. He gave a small nod to the guards. “An impressive show of making up time.” 

The lead guard nodded quickly, leading them into what Hinata assumed was the royal antechamber.

A woman was already waiting for them.

To be honest, Hinata probably would have missed her if not for a decade experience needing to be aware of everyone.

Queen Maemi of Futakuchi held the air of someone so unobtrusive that she could blend into the very patterns of the wall if she so chose. That was not to say she wasn’t beautiful--warm brown curls held up with a golden circlet as a kind smile met everyone she faced. She had the kind of classic beauty that spoke of comfort and mild temperament rather than stunning.

Hinata watched her carefully, trying to understand why Kenji wanted her as Futakuchi’s leader.

...or if he just wanted it to be anyone but him.

She stood and even her voice was soft. “King Yudai, we’re so honored you could accept our invitation. I trust your trip was well?”

“It was.” Yudai nodded, still tense. “Thank you, Queen Maemi.”

“Oh, please call me Mimi. Everyone does.” She laughed and it seemed like all the room went a bit brighter. “Plus, I do hope our countries can be close again. Names seem a good first step.”

Yudai appeared to consciously let his shoulders drop. “If you’re sure.”

“I am,” she said before hesitating. “Apologies, you’re a bit earlier than we were expecting. Hotaka is still in a meeting with his advisor.” She looked down, a hint of nervousness leaking through. “I can send for him at once.”

“No need,” Yudai reassured quickly. “I’m the guest here; I’m fine waiting.”

Maemi smiled at him. “Thank you, I’m in your debt.” She tilted her head. “Ah, but, now we’re such terrible hosts. At least allow me to give you a tour of the gardens. They’re beautiful this time of year and I’d love to have someone to show them to.”

“Of course,” Yudai managed.

“Excellent,” Maemi said and moved forward carefully as Yudai offered his arm. Her smile widened. “You’re a wonderful guest, King Yudai. Thank you for the company.”

Yudai shot one last hesitant look at Hinata before he was led away. 

Hinata had a second to wonder if there could be such a thing as a politeness face off and, if so, whether even Yudai stood a chance against the Futakuchi Queen. It gave him a strong sense of homesickness. Kageyama and Tsukishima couldn’t be that polite if their lives were at stake.

For some reason, it just made the thought more comforting.

Hinata shook the idea away and focused on his own mission. 

He turned back to the guards, left waiting with him, and tried to plan how exactly he was going to get out of this.

And, then, he saw a glimpse of bright red in the corner of his eye and his stomach plummeted at the same time he faced the grim certainty that he no longer needed to worry about a distraction.

Kenji would probably forgive him if the palace burned down.

….eventually forgive him. 

Tendou waved back cheerfully, leaning against the wall.

Hinata waited.

Nothing happened.

Hinata carefully eyed the two guards and silently sent them apologies as they were bound to notice the six foot figure of red hair and chaos soon and, then, it was all over.

He kept waiting.

Tendou eyed him expectantly.

“Um,” Hinata finally said, “aren’t you going to do something?”

The guards exchanged a look. “About what, sir?”

“About….about him,” Hinata said, pointing to the grinning Tendou.

There was a beat.

“Who…,” the second guard blinked, “who are you talking about?”

Hinata stared at them. “Him!”

“They can’t see me,” Tendou called over. “You seemed so tense earlier! I decided I’d let you handle this one! Isn’t this more fun?”

Hinata seriously regretted every choice that ever led him to meeting the Fate.

“Sir, are you okay,” the lead guard stepped up and Hinata immediately went into his back up plan.

“Oh,” Hinata swayed, sitting heavily in the armchair, “I think I’m more hurt from that carriage crash than I thought.”

“You have a concussion,” the second guard sounded panicked, probably at the thought of the servant of a key dignitary dying in their watch after less than five minutes. “Do you need a medic?”

“I….,” Hinata blinked, eyes widening as he let his voice go weak, “but….my king….he’s counting on me….and I….” his hand flew up to his mouth and faked a coughing fit, sliding in one of the capsule he luckily still had from his uniform.

He looked up, stricken. 

“Sir!”

Hinata drew his hand away, showing the fake blood.

“Does anyone else see that light,” Hinata breathed out.

And, then, he let his eyes roll back as he collapsed, doing an impressive approximation of a faint if he did say so himself.

“Medic! Find a mage now!” 

There was the sound of two guards scrambling and, then, Hinata was left in silence.

He cracked an eye open to the sound of Tendou clapping. 

“Aww, Little Ace,” Tendou ruffled his hair, “I didn’t know you had a flair for dramatics! That was terrible! Those poor guards."

Yeah, Hinata felt bad about that. He kinda wished he could send them a fruit basket or something. Or flowers. It was hard to say oops-sorry-for-making-you-think-you-killed-me through floral arrangement.

Instead, Hinata shrugged. “As someone who’s nearly died a bunch, I think I did alright.” He went serious. “We need to find King Hotaka--he’s supposed to be meeting with his advisors.”

“And you want my help,” Tendou said sagely.

“Um….yes?” 

Well, it at least beat wandering around the palace aimlessly.

Tendou seemed to take his clear reluctance with relish. He stuck out his hand. “I think I can come up with enough magic for a little tiny spell!”

That sounded like the simplest thing Tendou had ever offered. 

Hinata narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “What kind of spell?”

“Transportation, obviously,” Tendou winked. “Don’t worry, even with only a bit of my magic, there’s a better than fifty percent chance all of you will end up in the right spot!”

Hinata was pretty sure they could just walk. He sighed, taking Tendou’s hand anyway.

“You’re learning,” Tendou sounded almost proud. “Just for that, I’ll throw in hiding us for free.”

Hinata didn’t have time to ask before a loud _pop!_ sounded in his ears and the room was suddenly a whole lot darker than it had been a second before.

And then he heard voices.

“Come on,” Tendou said, tugging them both behind a curtain. “Word of advice: may want to stay close to me--I can make sure they never see _me;_ but, _you_ alone is a whole other trick that I don’t quite have the magic for.”

Considering that this was magic that Hinata had never even heard Suga mention before, he didn’t question it--listening instead to the meeting right out of sight and watching the shadows move around the table.

“It’s ready,” asked a gravelly voice that Hinata could only assume was the king.

“Yes,” another voice spoke up, “the guards have all received their orders. They’ll be ready by the end of the month. But, your Majesty, are you sure? This is the largest naval operation we’ve ever planned--bigger than setting up the Wall. The cost of men alone--”

“Are you questioning King Hotaka,” a man’s voice spoke up, loud and strident.

“Of course not,” the first denied immediately. “I was only suggesting--”

“Suggesting that you know the navy better than his own Majesty,” the man sneered. “Or do you need me to come back and show you how it’s done?”

“Takahashi,” a gentler voice and Hinata placed it as Otsuka, the royal advisor. Otsuka sighed, voice heavy and slow. “That’s enough. I’m sure our head admiral can handle our navy and we need you here as our Guard Captain to keep us safe.” A pause. “I know Kenji, he’s smart. He won’t make this easy once he figures it out.”

Takahashi laughed. “If the brat was truly a threat, he’d have showed up ages ago. Face it, Otsuka, this is _barely_ an operation--it’s more just, hmm, family grooming. Right, Hotaka?”

King Hotaka didn’t bother raising to the bait. “You have your orders.”

“We do, Your Majesty,” Otsuka said softly. “And I believe our guest from Hyakuzawa has already arrived. It would be rude of us to keep him waiting for so much longer.”

There was the sound of movement, the securing of paper and Hinata had to risk it--had to see what they were talking about before it was all stored away.

He looked up at Tendou. “Can you--”

Tendou winked and the rug shifted--right under the head admiral’s feet.

The man cursed as he fell, papers going everywhere to the sound of a laugh from Takahashi. Hinata stayed low, grabbing a rolled parchment off of the floor before quietly slinking back behind the curtain. 

Hinata held his breath, the parchment close to his chest as he waited for the men to finally leave the room. 

He unrolled the paper in his hands, Tendou leaning right over his shoulder.

And, then, he groaned. 

Hinata kinda thought he might hate Futakuchi

“Ooooh,” Tendou let out a low whistle, “ _well,_ it looks like the King’s coming after you first.”

On the paper was a highly detailed plan to capture and execute every pirate ship in Futakuchi’s waters. It didn’t take a genius to see they were targeting one in particular.

Hinata sighed, knocking his head back against the wall. “Kenji’s going to be so mad.”

So much for keeping any of this quiet.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

There was a knock on the door, hesitant when it shouldn’t be and Tsukishima immediately felt a premonition building like headache. 

“Come in.”

Yachi inched open the door, a slip of paper clenched tight in her hand.

“Good news or bad?” Tsukishima cut to the chase.

Yachi hesitated. “Shimizu found a lead. Well, actually she found a message.”

She slid the paper over to him.

Tsukishima frowned, opening it to reveal a simple address. “The Hawks left a message.”

“No.” Yachi met his eyes. “Kei, it’s from Akiteru. We think he wants to meet with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys, later than I expected but I really thank all of you for your patience and support! Should be back to almost caught up now so next chapter is the normal schedule, Nov. 21-22. 
> 
> I appreciate all of you! Hope ya'll are having a least stressful week as possible!
> 
> Update: Grr, sorry, needed a few rewrites. Probably expect in the next few days. Sorry, guys!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um, probably not for huge Akiteru fans. Like I wouldn't say I'm bashing his character (since the circumstances he's in for this story, don't really apply to his character in canon); but, he's having a rough time. I really do like his character, I promise.

_ 11 Years Prior _

_ Kuroo was definitely pouting--in a way that may have been cute on a six year old and should absolutely  _ not  _ still be cute on a six foot tall Ace--which Kenma was desperately trying to remind himself. _

_ ….Stupid puberty. _

_ Kenma would really rather skip forward a decade or rewind a few months. Not too much just back before he woke up one day with weirdly large zit on his chin and a much more alarmingly realization that he could look at his best friend, sweating and laughing right after training, and instead of thinking  _ gross _ \--like he absolutely should have--thought of….well, gross wasn’t exactly the right word. The acne went away with work; the rest unfortunately did not. _

_ Stupid, inconvenient puberty that Nekomata just laughed at when Kenma subtly asked if there was a magical way to skip passed it. _

_ There were two saving graces. The first was that there was always enough paperwork that Kenma could reasonably bury himself to distraction when Kuroo was doing something dumb that his brain unfortunately translated to cute. _

_ The second was that Kuroo hadn’t noticed. _

_Kenma wasn’t sure how long the second one would last. Actually, he wasn’t completely sure Kuroo hadn’t already figured it out and was acting the same as usual out of misplaced kindness. Kenma knew Kuroo as much as he knew his own self and he had a creeping suspicion that Kuroo might know him_ _even better than that. Kuroo always had been good at picking up his thoughts, no matter how quiet. Whether he’d find out Kenma’s latest concern wasn’t a question of if, only of when._

_ Kenma could only hope that would be the end of it. _

_ Breathing out, Kenma glanced briefly across his desk and noticed he wasn’t the only one distracted. _

_ “I don’t know why you’re pouting,” Kenma said, turning back to his papers. _

_ The offended gasp echoed back. “I’m brooding, Kenma. It’s very different.” _

_ Kenma barely avoided rolling his eyes. “You knew it would happen. He was the Ace for over seventy years, Kuroo. We’ve only been here for four.” _

_ Kuroo couldn’t win, not yet. They both knew it. _

_ Kuroo made a token protest anyway. “Well, excuse me, if I thought I had a better chance at winning a duel against a nearly ninety year old.” _

_ Kenma didn’t bother stopping the eye roll this time, though he did direct it at the papers. _

_ Kuroo had gotten stronger--incredibly so, faster than anyone had expected even from an Ace. Kenma could hear it in the whispers among the other knights and could see it reflected in the look of pride the old Ace gave Kuroo whenever he was sure he was looking away. Kenma himself felt particularly aware of it, in the way the familiar outline of the boy he’d grown up with had become broader and taller, lean muscle filling out what once had been merely soft and scrawny.  _

_ He  _ supposed _ it was good for an Ace; it wasn’t exactly helping Kenma get over his unfairly prominent crush. _

_ Kuroo had crossed his arms, seemingly lost in thought and the movement pulled at the shirt fabric in a way that emphasized exactly how much stronger he’d gotten and how he really, really should have gone to his new clothes fitting a few months ago. _

_ “You lasted longer this time.” Kenma distracted him for his own sanity as much as Kuroo’s giant ego. “You’ll beat him by the next festival.” _

_ It worked. Kuroo unfolded his arms, perking up like a pleased cat and Kenma felt absurdly grateful. _

_ “Yeah, maybe….you really think we can’t convince him to stay longer?” _

_ Kenma shrugged.  _

_ No, not with Kuroo getting better everyday. Everyone in Cards knew the former Ace had been waiting for his chance to retire after his wife’s death. Four years after his official retirement, he’d only stayed this long to train Kuroo and to ease the transition. _

_ Still...if anyone could convince him to stay for another year, it was Kuroo. The question was whether Kuroo would try and Kenma already suspected that answer really was no--for as much as he didn’t say it, Kuroo knew exactly the burden being a Suit member took. _

_ Kenma looked down at his papers. That would still be a transition--probably around the time of the festival. That meant change that other kingdoms might see as weakness, especially with Diamonds as the head of Cards border.  _

_ He thought of the other Suits. Clubs’ Suit was old but stable as ever and they already had at least some of their next Suit waiting in the wings, even if they still may take forever actually letting them Claim the title. Between an immortal Queen like Sugawara and an experienced Jack with Takeda, Spades would be fine as well. _

And their Ace,  _ Kenma tacked on after a second’s hesitation, remembering the bright hair and the brighter smile of the boy who’d literally dropped into his room barely a few months. Shoyou was newer, definitely; but, Kenma already had an instinct he’d be doing a disservice to count him as a liability instead of a strength. _

_ Which left the true weakness as Hearts--freshly out of a Civil War, still dealing with the financial loss of Futakuchi’s isolation, and with only an Ace a little older than Kenma. _

_ Kuroo said something and Kenma hummed in vague agreement, already trying to think how he could move resources to quietly shore up defense around Diamonds while helping Hearts. _

_ If all went like they were expecting, Kuroo would be acting Ace sooner rather than later. Kenma would make sure he had all the time he needed to steady himself--even if it meant maneuvering the rest of the kingdom around it. _

_ It’s what Kuroo would do for him. _

_ That thought process derailed like a sudden change in altitude when he felt warmth beside him and he looked up to find Kuroo sitting on his desk, so much closer than the last time Kenma he’d noticed. _

_ “You know,” Kuroo said, voice low and amused. He reached out, running a thumb between Kenma’s brow and Kenma’s breath caught. “You always make the weirdest expressions when you’re thinking.” _

_ The air smacked back into Kenma’s lungs with a force and he tried to manage a smile that looked normal. “Nekomata said the same thing last week.” _

_ “Oh ho, so you’re frowning for him, too?” Kuroo gave his big, dumb grin that was absolutely  _ not  _ attractive and Kenma did  _ not  _ react to it. “I’m hurt, Kenma, here I thought I was special.” _

_ Kenma didn’t think. “You are.” _

_ And, then, he started internally cursing. _

_ Stupid puberty. Stupid Kuroo. One of them was going to kill him, that’s for sure. Kenma’s reign was going to end as a very embarrassing history note about the dangers of hormones and maybe,  _ then,  _ Nekomata would acknowledge it as a serious medical emergency. _

_ Kuroo leaned in, grin traded in for a smirk and Kenma acknowledged his approaching doom. “Yeah?” _

_ “No one has your ego,” Kenma aimed for flippant, building up his defenses that were demolished just as quickly by Kuroo’s usual braying laugh. _

_ “You wound me, My King.” _

_ Kenma grit his teeth and refused to blush. “You’re used to it.” _

_ Kuroo started teasing and Kenma contemplated an abrupt vacation to Haykuzawa--surely the headache of dealing with  _ that  _ political nightmare would kill any room for other feelings.  _

_ “You’re going to make the other Aces mock me. Look at Hearts, Iwaizumi already won a war. Spades has their terrifying assassin Ace that probably has fangs or claws with how Tsukishima keeps talking him up. And then, there’s  _ me _ , without even my King to talk me up.” _

_ Kenma rolled his eyes and turned back to the remaining sanctuary of his desk. _

_ “Come on, give me something, Kenma. I need compliments.” _

_ Maybe he actually was trying to murder Kenma. There was a chance, the evidence was overwhelming. _

_ “Why?” _

_ “Too feed my big ego, like you said,” he retorted. “Come on, Kenma, it’s practically starving here.” _

_ Kenma snapped his head up, not even caring what his expression was as Kuroo’s grin only got impossible wider. _

_ And, then, the worst possible thing in the world happened. _

_ Kuroo leaned in further, far enough that Kenma wondered if he was even conscious of it, and his tone dropped down lower like it had been doing some times lately and every single time was bad for Kenma’s health. This time was even worse, though. This time there was something warm between the syllables, teasing like smoke with the heat of coal building a fire.  _

_ Kuroo had leaned in, too close as he spoke in  _ that  _ voice. “Well, I’m waiting.” _

_ Something snapped--probably Kenma’s sanity--and the pressure left him in a sigh. _

_ Fine.  _ Fine,  _ whatever. Kenma knew he wasn’t going to be able to keep his thoughts from Kuroo forever. If Kuroo didn’t know already--and Kenma didn’t think he did, hoped he didn’t, because if he did and was asking for this anyway….well, Kenma knew he didn’t because Kuroo had never been cruel. _

_ And as soon as Kenma met his eyes, Kenma  _ knew  _ that Kuroo would see it. _

_ There wasn’t anywhere to hide. _

_ In the end, it didn’t matter because when Kenma finally made himself look up, when he met Kuroo’s eyes head on--he could feel everything change. _

_ He saw Kuroo’s breath catch and Kenma knew he felt it, too. _

_ It was hard to name, like a shift in the air, like the pull of a magnet. It wasn’t even anything new, just something building until it was quite suddenly  _ there.

_ Absurdly, Kenma suddenly thought that maybe this was one of those things that didn’t really have a start. Unobservable, quiet, unable to be seen. Like rocks shifting to become a mountain. Like snow melting to become a river. Like water washing out stone for a cave. _

_ No beginning, not really, only an inevitable end. _

_ How terrifying. _

_ And Kenma abruptly realized he couldn’t be the one to move under it. He didn’t know if he ever could. He didn’t want to. Everything felt too large and heavy, only held back by a thin, fragile thread that Kenma  _ couldn’t  _ be the one to move forward to break. _

_ And maybe he really had been naive. Because even a few seconds ago, he’d still believed that everything he felt between them was something new that could be gotten over rather than something that had been steadily building since the very first time one of them had toddled over to their neighbor’s house--maybe longer if he believed in fate. _

_ Kenma looked steadily into Kuroo’s eyes, the other’s wide and breathing heavy. _

_ Kenma had three realizations, one right after the other. _

_ He only said one of them. “Thank you.” _

_ Kuroo blinked, voice rusty. “What?” _

_ “For getting me here, for being here,” Kenma elaborated because some things needed to be said before everything else and, regardless of how anything ended, Kenma needed Kuroo to hear this so he knew Kenma understood. “For staying with me.” _

_ “I’ll always be here.” _

_ “I know.” Kenma looked away even as he felt Kuroo’s eyes follow him. _

Fates, I’m in love with you,  _ Kenma thought, loud enough he wouldn’t be surprised if Kuroo heard. Was expecting him to already know, actually. Kuroo always saw the best in him before Kenma could see it himself. It only made sense Kuroo could see himself there. _

_ And the final realization: Kenma couldn’t move. _

_ He couldn’t even look at him, couldn’t add to the pressure that already felt so heavy.  _

_ Kenma had always been the mind, making the plan and waiting for Kuroo to act on it in ways that Kenma never could himself. This wasn’t any different, really. Kenma had figured it out and he knew in the way he always did that Kuroo had followed after him--had read it off Kenma’s face just like he had done forever. The thought was there, so, now Kenma simply had to wait for Kuroo to do what Kenma could never do himself. _

_ He waited for Kuroo to act on it. _

_ As soon as he was ready. _

_ But, that day wasn’t today and that was okay, too. Even as Kenma felt the air fade and the tug of disappointment as Kuroo leaned away, clearing his throat. _

_ “You know, I don’t think that counted as a compliment.” _

_ “Your hair defies physics,” Kenma said and this time it was easy. “That’s scientifically fascinating.” _

_ He smiled while Kuroo whined. _

_ Everything was alright; they had time. _

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kenma sat behind his desk, surrounded by parchments and the haunting lack of sound.

Yaku fought against grimacing.

Part of him wondered if Kenma noticed it anyway. He wasn’t putting it past him.

Yaku was a researcher. In fact, he’d been working as Cards’ top researcher for almost ten years and he  _ knew  _ he was good at it. He’d never been shy a day in his life and he certainly wasn’t shy about the things he’d earned. He was the best and he was proud of it.

Which also meant he saw things no one else did.

In a way, he’d always thought that’s what helped him understand Kenma. Because when it came down to it, research was really all about test and observation.

Yaku set up his lab, planned experiments, manipulated variables, ran the test, and watched for what would happen.

Kenma watched  _ everything.  _ At a scale far wider and messier than any of Yaku’s experiments could even hope for--trade deals, political alliances, funding, contingency plans. An entire kingdom managed from the bottom based on tiny, little things Kenma guessed would happen.

It would be terrifying if Kenma wasn’t right on nearly all of it.

Actually, scratch that. Yaku thought that might make it even more terrifying.

There was no doubt in any of the palace’s mind that Kenma was the brain that made Diamonds run and Yaku couldn’t imagine serving under another king.

But, Yaku knew experiments. He knew a single alteration could change the entire reaction--how pressure in the wrong part could break the component or the wrong mix turned something ordinary into a slow toxin.

Yaku was a researcher and he knew something was changing.

Kenma glanced up, questioning.

Yaku fought the grimace again.

That was another thing he didn’t know how to feel about. Kenma was always quiet naturally--prefering to talk more in private than in public. The perfect counter to Lev’s...well, Lev, if Yaku was being honest. But, in the past month, there was something different in the silence that made it stifling instead of a comfort.

Yaku couldn't read him and the one who always could was across an ocean playing pirate.

“I came to see if you wanted help,” Yaku asked, sitting in the office chair. 

Kenma didn’t pause to think. “I’ll be fine.”

“What are you working on,” Yaku asked.

“The knight patrols,” Kenma shifted the papers and Yaku absently picked up on the old injury reports. “I’m changing the patrol groups again.”

Yaku sighed. “They’re not going to like that.”

There was already enough simmering annoyance between the lack of their Ace and the other changes Kenma had made while Yaku assumed he was trying to get a handle on everything that Kuroo normally dealt with.

Kenma nodded. “We need it.”

Personally, Yaku wasn’t sure what exactly was wrong with keeping the knight schedule they already had; but, he had never bothered caring about defense more than he had to. “You know if you need some help sorting through it, I’m sure some of the knights wouldn’t mind taking it over.” He hesitated. “Especially if they know it’ll be awhile before Kuroo’s back.”

“That’s a risk,” Kenma said quietly before looking up. “But, you’re right. I requested two of them to meet later.”

Yaku started to relax. “Who?”

“Shibayama and Taketora.”

Yaku choked and barely disguised it as a cough. “What?”

It wasn’t….well, okay, Yaku supposed it wasn’t like there was anything  _ wrong  _ with them. Taketora was actually one of their better fighters if Yaku remembered right. It was just that Taketora had a tendency to be loud and hot headed in a way that set off some of the older guard. Yaku never knew Kenma even got along with him. 

And Shibayama was….young. Really, really young--maybe not the newest recruits; but barely there two years and with a baby face that made him look even younger than that.

They weren’t the choices Yaku would pick to ease tensions.

Kenma’s face was calm as ever. “I’m promoting them to lieutenants and having them to act as temporary Knight Captains.”

Yaku looked askance. “Kenma, why?”

“I need them.” Kenma shrugged. “Shibayama can run the internal palace guards and Taketora can take the border guards.” 

Yaku watched him, reading what he could from the carefully expressionless face and abnormally blank eyes.

Yaku still couldn’t read him for shit.

But, Yaku nodded because at the end of the day Kenma was his King. Still. “Are you  _ sure,  _ Kenma?”

Kenma looked away. “I am. We don’t have much time.”

Yaku didn’t know which part Kenma was talking about; but, for some reason, he couldn’t help but agree. It didn’t feel like there was time at all.

He just hoped whatever was changing wouldn’t break everything else.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Let it be known that Hinata was willing to admit this entire mission may not be his finest hour in espionage.

If it was any comfort, it looked like Kenji had a headache, too, from the way he was rubbing his temples and looked longingly at the mug of ale sitting on his desk.

“So, let me get this straight,” Kenji said. “You went to town? To get  _ food _ ?”

“Um, yes,” Hinata said, silently wishing Kuroo had come up with a better excuse.

Oh well, the most important part of a cover was commitment.

“I just thought,” Hinata looked down meekly, “....well, you guys are already doing so much to help Ace Kuroo that I could do something nice for you. I’ve worked in the kitchens before; I know how to cook for crowds.”

“Yeah, great, very thoughtful. But, you didn’t get food, did you?” Kenji drawled, flinging up a finger to point. “You got  _ him _ ?”

King Yudai smiled awkwardly and exchanged a look with Hinata, unsure which of them should answer that.

Kenji didn’t let either of them. “So, basically, you went on a shopping trip, ran into the  _ King of Hyakuzawa,  _ somehow talked him into working with us, and brought him back here. Did I get that right?”

“.....Yes,” Hinata ventured. “Um, sorry, I forgot the food?”

Kenji barked out a laugh that sounded slightly hysterical.

“I can go back and pick some up later,” Hinata offered.

Kenji dragged a hand down his face. “ _ No _ . With your luck, you’d probably run into a fucking Nohebi General before you picked up the bread.” He squinted. “And who’s he?”

Tendou waved a hand. “Oh, don’t mind me, I’m just here for the show!”

“He found me in the city,” Hinata added hastily. “....I know him from Cards….when I was a kid. He was trapped here before the Iron Wall went up! He’s a friend!” And Hinata was very proud that the last word only sounded a bit strained.

Kenji looked at Kuroo.

Kuroo shrugged. “If Hinata says he’s a friend, I believe him.”

Kenji narrowed his eyes. “You don’t know him?”

“I’m an enigma,” Tendou piped in. “A mystery! A scrumptious cannoli full of surprises!”

Kuroo and Kenji both ignored him.

“It’s not like I know everyone from Cards,” Kuroo said defensively.

Kenji raised a brow. “Hmmmm.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Just hmmm,” Kenji turned back to Tendou. “I take it you’re staying to help?”

Tendou held a hand to his chest. “Couldn’t get me to leave if you tried.”

Hinata shivered before he could help himself. “He…..he knows magic.”

Everyone turned at that.

“You’re a Mage,” Moniwa asked, surprised. 

Tendou wiggled his fingers, grin widening. “Oh, who likes labels? Shorty’s right, I am magic, magic is me.” He giggled. “In fact, you could say we’re old friends, really. Inseparable. Two peas in a pod. My truest love. My life blood. What would I even be without it but scattered dust in the wind?”

Hinata really,  _ really  _ wished the founders of his country could be a little more normal. Or at least cared enough to pretend. He wondered if Order was any better and then had the even more terrifying thought that he might be worse.

Kenji looked at Hinata and asked straight out. “Is he sane?”

Hinata nodded miserably.

“And, to be clear, you can do magic,” Kenji asked Tendou.

Tendou gave a thumbs up. “Used to be better. Bit homesick.”

“Whatever, I’ll take it,” Kenji decided to take the path of least resistance. He sighed. “You know this country is  _ under blockade.  _ We don’t really have visitors.”

Yudai gave a small cough. “Technically, I was invited.”

Kenji frowned. “What?”

“He was invited here by King Hotaka and Queen Maemi,” Hinata said and didn’t have to be a spy to notice how the very air of the office seemed to shift. “He thought they invited him here to talk about opening up trade; but, really, they need his forces if they want to take Cards.”

“Which I’d refuse, obviously,” Yudai said, glancing at Kuroo. “Cards and Hyakuzawa are allies. We’re supposed to be able to lean on each other for support, not wait for a sword in the back.”

Kuroo nodded though didn’t make a comment. It was no secret that of all the Card kingdoms, Diamonds historically took the brunt of Hyakuzawa’s attacks by virtue of sharing a border.

“How noble,” Kenji drawled, steeping his fingers. “But, I don’t see how having  _ another  _ country involved is going to help with keeping our,” he grimaced, “…. _ task _ a secret.”

Hinata sighed. “There’s not going to be an assignation; there’s going to be an attack.”

“That wasn’t what we agreed,” Kenji said, tone deceptively mild in a way that held steel

“ _ We’re  _ not going to be the ones attacking,” Hinata said. “There’s something you need to know. Since King Yudai was already invited, Tendou and I snuck into the palace and overheard King Hotaka’s meeting.”

Tendou bounced over, pulling out the rolled parchment and handing it over to Kenji. “Looks like they’re not so keen on forget and let live, hmmm?”

Kenji unrolled the scroll and froze while Kuroo and Aone both leaned over at his other sides.

“They’re planning a raid on the pirates,” Aone said.

“And it’s aimed at your ship,” Kuroo said. “Fuck, even if we take out Hotaka, it’s not going to stop this. Not when it already looks like they’ve got all the generals involved.” He looked down at Kenji. “Well, what’s our next bright idea?”

Kenji hadn’t moved.

“Kenji,” Moniwa tried. “Your Highness.”

Kenji stood up haltingly--for once, unsteady on the shifting ship beneath him. He didn’t say a word, walking out of the office without saying a word.

The rest were left in silence.

“Aone,” Moniwa said, “should I--”

Aone shook his head, already following his king. “I will.”

The silence fell again.

“Well,” Tendou hopped up to sit on the desk , “that seemed like it went well.” Then, he perked up, grabbing Kenji’s forgotten mug and downing it. 

The rest stared at him.

Tendou tsked. “It’s not as if he was drinking it.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

On the tallest mast, in the basket of the crow’s nest, the world seemed a lot more manageable. For that reason alone, it was Kenji’s favorite way to view the kingdom.

Didn’t stop down below from being an entire shitshow.

He wasn’t surprised when he heard company climbing up, especially when there was only one person who’d find him this fast.

“You know the crow’s nest wasn’t really built to hold two people,” Kenji said but stepped aside as Aone got in beside him.

Aone didn’t speak.

“You knew where I’d be,” Kenji said, more to distract than anything.

Aone nodded.

“Well, what can I say.” Kenji shrugged. “Best place to look down on people and you know I’ve always loved that.”

A ghost of a smile washed across Aone’s face. “Not true.”

“Definitely true, you did know me as a kid, remember?” Kenji glared at Aone’s returning smile. “Fuck, why won’t you ever let me be a worse person, Aone? You realize you’re stopping me from my true calling as a total asshole, right? And I’m absolutely holding a grudge.”

Aone tilted his head. “You’re better than you let yourself believe.”

Fucking Aone.

Kenji grit his teeth. “Not better enough.”

“Do you have to be?”

_ “Yes.”  _ Kenji threw out a hand to encompass everything--the ship, the ocean, the islands, the  _ people.  _ “Yes. I have to be. They  _ deserve  _ someone who can be. And don’t--” He shoved a finger into Aone’s chest. “ _ \--don’t  _ tell me that’s me.”

“It’s you,” Aone said.

Kenji threw his hands up. “Fates, do you ever listen to me?”

“It’s obvious,” Aone continued. “How could you think it’s not?”

“Because I thought I deserved it  _ before _ ,” Kenji yelled. “And you know what? I was  _ wrong _ ! I was a spoiled brat that wanted to goof off rather than run a kingdom! How could I possibly think I deserved to be King? Of course, I didn’t! The smartest person I’ve ever met knew I didn’t and that’s why Otsuka gave the crown to Hotaka.” Kenji scrubbed a hand through his hair. “I already went through this once, Aone.”

“You’ve changed,” Aone said. “I know. I’ve been here.”

Kenji scoffed. “Yeah, maybe I have. But, the only thing that means is that now I know  _ exactly  _ why the kingdom deserves more than me for King!”

“Your High--,” Aone stopped himself. “Your Majesty. You know it. You realized there wasn’t another way as soon as you saw the chart. That’s why you ran.”

“Aone, just stop.” Kenji told himself he wasn’t begging. “Don’t make me do this again.”

“I am.” Aone paused. “I always will, Your Majesty.”

_ “Why?” _

Aone’s tone was polished iron. “Because I serve the rightful heir and the rightful heir serves the kingdom.”

“That’s not me,” Kenji said. “Aone, I’m sorry, but I’m not the rightful heir for anything, much less Futakuchi.”

Aone’s eyes bore down on him.  _ “Then, who is?” _

Kenji flinched, trying to back down and Aone didn’t let him.

“If it’s not you, then who,” Aone demanded. “Who will you trust with Futakuchi? If  _ you  _ won’t, then who are you letting stand in your place?”

Kenji swallowed. “Aunt Mimi will be--”

“A target,” Aone said simply. “A kind person and not a leader.”

Kenji closed his eyes, leaning on the railing. “Aone, don’t make me do this.”

“I can’t.”

“This is where you tell me it’s always my choice,” Kenji asked sarcastically. He leaned his head in his hands. “Fuck.”

“Do you want to be King,” Aone asked.

Kenji opened his eyes to glare. “Shut up.”

Aone’s half smile was back. 

“Aone, what if it’s still not me,” Kenji asked. “What if I’m the only one we have and I’m still not enough? What if I find someone better?”

“Then, let them be king.”

Kenji almost laughed. “That easy?”

“No,” Aone said. “Not easy to find anyone better than you. Not for Futakuchi.”

Kenji’s voice dropped even lower. “But, what if there  _ is _ ? What if and….I don’t think I can do it again.”

“You can,” Aone said simply.

Kenji sighed. “Aone, I love you; but, is it possible you could have a  _ little  _ less faith in me here? I’m kind of going through a crisis.”

“If it’s for Futakuchi, there’s nothing you wouldn't do,” Aone continued. “Your Majesty.”

Kenji groaned. 

Aone really was the absolute worst.

Kenji took a breath then another one. He wouldn’t give an answer now, not like this--but they both knew a lack of denial already was an answer in its own way, just not yet in the open.

“Hotaka’s not just aiming at me. He’s planning a siege on the rest of the pirates, too, just in the hopes of getting to me,” Kenji said instead. “I saw the map. Half of those aren’t even pirate ships, just merchants that couldn’t afford the king’s seal of approval. They don’t have weapons. It’s going to be a bloodbath.”

Aone nodded. “The plan?”

“What makes you think I have a plan?”

Aone just waited.

“Alright, I may have something; but, it’s stupid and crazy and just as likely to get us killed as it is to work,” Kenji admitted.

Aone merely raised a brow.

“Hotaka has an army; we need one, too.” Kenji met Aone’s stare. “I want to call the pirates together.”

Aone’s eyes widened, choking and just barely turning it into a cough. Kenji felt a little smug that it wasn’t him for once.

“Will they listen,” Aone asked.

“Who the fuck knows,” Kenji stretched his arms. “But, it’s fight or run and the Iron Wall doesn’t let anyone run that far.”

Kenji hesitated for another moment, looking out over the railing.

Aone stood beside him.

“You know it’s stupid,” Kenji said. “Especially when we were planning an assassination; but…..I still can’t believe Uncle Hotaka’s risking so much just to kill me. I….,” he sighed, “even after everything, I’d still have mourned him. I’d have regretted what we didn’t have. I’d have  _ cared _ .” Kenji looked down. “He’s not a good man, he never really was. He’s trying to throw Futakuchi into war. He killed my father. He’s killing thousands just so he can kill me and I still think I love my uncle. Even a little bit.”

“That’s not stupid,” Aone said.

“Think so?”

Aone took a breath, stopping in the way he always did when he was thinking through his words. 

Kenji waited on him for once.

“I think if we could only care about the people we chose, love would be easier,” Aone said. “I also think if love only existed when it was wanted, when it was easy, then it wouldn’t mean anything.” 

Kenji rolled the words around in his head. “No, I suppose it wouldn’t.”

He put his hands on the railing and pushed off, the entirety of Futakuchi waiting below.

“Well,” he barred his teeth for Aone alone, “let’s get started. We’ve got a battle to fight.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Yachi’s knuckles were white along the notes and her smile, for once, was erased in a hard line.

“Are we ready,” Tsukishima asked her.

She nodded. “The meeting place is an open alley. Noya’s stationed on the roof a building over, Shimizu’s blending in at the bar across the street, Asahi’s on standby with medical supplies, and Queen Suga and I will be waiting to move in the second you don’t meet the check in time.”

Tsukishima hummed. “It’s almost like you’re expecting something bad to happen. I’m hurt.”

“Not yet,” Yachi shot back. “And you’re welcome.”

“Tt, you know I leave the stabbings to Hinata. He has practice.”

By the look, Yachi apparently didn’t appreciate the joke as much as he planned.

He sighed. “If Akiteru wanted to kill me, Hitoka, there’s easier ways to try than setting up a meeting. Plus, based on what Hinata told us,  _ apparently  _ the man’s got a noble side and thinks he’s helping me. That doesn’t exactly align with being killed in a dark alley. Whatever he is, it’s not an assassin--at least not one with experience.”

“He’s a Blood Mage,” Yachi said. “He’s already tried to kill Hinata and the Ace of Diamonds plus is working with the Hawks to bring down Cards. If we’re not calling him an assassin, then what is he?”

“Let’s see,” Tsukishima pretended to think, “a man that after realizing we suspect him for two counts of regicide, sends a time and a location where he’ll be-- _ to  _ the country’s spymaster, I’ll add, and for a city known for its assassins. Plus, conveniently gives us enough time to set up our own agents. And, I’m assuming here, is counting on escaping merely because of my sentiment. Sentiment I’m, of course, so  _ very  _ known for.” He glanced up. “I thought it was obvious what he is. He’s an idiot.”

He doesn’t give Yachi a chance to respond. “When I snap, have Noya and Shimizu move in for capture. From what Kageyama and Suga have dug up, without anyone under their control, Blood Mages aren’t any more dangerous than regular mages. A deserted alley’s more of a disadvantage to him than it is to us.”

Yachi nodded, making a note.

Tsukishima sighed. “Of course, even for an idiot, I can’t imagine he’s actually going into this without anything planned. So, even if the capture turns out to be a bust--which is likely--I’ll still try to get some information.” He paused, thinking out loud. “For now, based on getting a note and that Hinata said Akiteru recognized him, we can assume Akiteru suspects we know who he is and that he’s working for the Hawks. He probably suspects Hinata and I were working together on the investigation. He may have guessed we know about the Blood Mage part; but, I doubt it.”

He cut off.

“What is it,” Yachi asked.

“I’m wondering if it would benefit us more if I let it slip we know about the bloodmagic.” He shrugged. “I don’t know how much I can question him without it coming up and it shouldn’t hurt  _ us  _ if he knows we figured it out. If anything, it’ll make him more cautious about using it if he knows we’ll suspect it.….The most important part is he doesn’t find out Hinata and Kuroo are alive.”

“Right.” Then, Yachi hesitated, business like demeanor slipping momentarily. “Ready, Tsuki?”

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “He’s not my brother; just another obstacle.” 

Yachi didn’t bother continuing to argue, slipping back in the shadows presumably to wait with Suga around the next block.

Which left Tsukishima relatively alone.

The strange thing was that despite over a decade working as Spades’ Jack, including a number of missions where he himself was forced to get personally involved, Tsukishima actually hadn’t been left to himself very much. Not in the field, at least.

He preferred watching it from afar, plotting at his desk and moving the pieces just so for Hinata to come in and knock it all down. Tsukishima had barely had to go out in the field for years and, when he did, it was when the situation was too unpredictable, too volatile, for either Hinata or him to handle it separately.

He wondered what this meeting would fall under.

He stepped into the alley, footsteps light and casual as he moved his hands up in the same gesture he used when meeting nervous informants--just enough away from his waist to show he wasn’t holding a weapon and never enough to imply he wasn’t still dangerous.

The other man was already there and Tsukishima finally got a look at the man that could’ve been his brother in a different life.

He looked like him--the bone structure, the build of his body, even the eye shape.

Tsukishima found the observation annoying. He’d planned to survey the man exactly like he would any suspect; but, it was hard to reach that level of detachment when it was the same features he saw in a mirror staring back at him.

Instead, he focused on the differences. Hair straight and darker. Longer nose. A ridiculous slackjawed and wide eyed expression that Tsuki wouldn’t be caught dead in.

“....Kei,” the man--fine, Akiteru--finally stuttered out and the single word sounded pained just as much as it was hopeful, “is it really you?”

“I have a policy against answering stupid questions,” Tsukishima said, not bothering to stop surveying the man for any clues he could pick up.

Akiteru ignored the tone completely, face breaking out into a wide, watery smile. “You’ve gotten so big.”

“Yes, that normally tends to happen between the ages of one and twenty-five,” Tsukishima drawled. “Forgive my assumption, but I thought a  _ Blood Mage  _ would have a better understanding of basic human biology.”

Akiteru’s shoulders dropped. “You know what I am?”

“I know a lot of things.”

It was then that Tsukishima noticed.

Akiteru didn’t have a shadow.

“Fuck.” Tsukishima kicked some rubble just to make sure.

The rocks and dirt soared right through Akiteru’s image as if he wasn’t even there. Because he wasn’t, of course, just a projection.

Fates, Tsukishima hated dealing with Mages the most.

“I’m sorry,” Akiteru said. “I wanted to see you in person; but, it wasn’t safe. I know you don’t trust me.”

“Amazing, I wonder why that could be?”

“You don’t even know me,” Akiteru continued sadly. “You should have. Our parents should have never given you to the castle. You should have been with  _ us.  _ I  _ begged _ them not to, I tried so hard to change their mind. I did everything I could think of.” He looked up at Tsukishima. “We should’ve grown up together.”

Tsukishima glared. “Hard pass.”

Akiteru flinched back. “I probably deserve that.”

And, then, he sniffed, wiping at his eyes.

“Ugh, are you actually crying?” Tsukishima shook his head. “Are you kidding me? Seriously, out of the two of us, how did  _ you  _ end up growing to be an evil Blood Mage?”

Akiteru blinked. “I’m not evil.”

“Why are you even here,” Tsukishima snapped and, at some part of his brain, he was aware that this wasn’t usually how he got information. That he needed to slow the conversation down, appeal to sympathy, keep the mark talking. 

But, right now, all he could feel was a dull, biting annoyance building to rage that  _ this man,  _ this crying excuse for a Mage, was the one who had made his life torture for the past few months, that had attacked his Suit. That of all the threats they’d ever faced that  _ this man,  _ with the wet eyes and the face that looked too much like Tsukishima, was the one that had gotten the closest to killing Hinata.

He wasn’t worthy of that. No one was, but especially not him.

And, even more distantly, Tsukishima suddenly realized that maybe the rest of them had a point, that maybe he hadn’t fully expected what meeting Akiteru would feel like.

But, it had  _ nothing  _ to do with mistaking Akiteru as a brother.

“I needed to see you,” Akiteru pleaded.

Tsukishima gritted his teeth. “Buy a portrait, they’ll last longer.”

“I needed to explain.  _ Please _ .” Akiteru moved forward as if he could grab Tsukishima’s shoulders when they both knew the gesture would just go right through. “I know you hate me. I would hate me, too. You can hate me for the rest of our lives and I’ll understand. But,  _ this  _ isn’t right.” 

“What isn’t,” Tsukishima bit out. “And I don’t need your permission to hate you.”

“Cards isn’t right,” Akiteru said. “None of this is right. Marking children-- _ babies _ \--and forcing them into service. Having them leave their families just so they can be safe without others trying to kill them. Training them before they ever get a choice. That isn’t a good kingdom. Everyone should get the choice about who they want to be. Magic….,” Akiteru went pale, “magic shouldn’t get to control  _ anyone  _ like that. Much less a kingdom.”

“Funny,” Tsukishima said flatly, “given your profession, I don’t believe you get to speak about magic controlling people.”

“That’s  _ how  _ I know,” Akiteru whispered, eyes skittering to the ground. “I’ve seen magic….do  _ terrible  _ things. Things that shouldn’t happen, things that shouldn’t be possible, that aren’t  _ right. _ I’ve been taught how to do them, too. I didn’t get a choice and now that I have one, I want to use everything I know to stop it.” He looked up. “Everyone talks about magic like it’s some miracle. Some amazing thing. But, it’s not. It’s corrupting and controlling and if the wrong person can use it…..they could destroy everything.”

Tsukishima lifted a brow. “Is that what the Hawks are telling you?”

“It’s what I know.” Akiteru sighed. “But, it’s why the Hawks are fighting, too. Cards trusts in magic too much. It lets it control it and magic will always take what you let it. As long as Cards is based on magic, it will always take the best of us….when they’re too young to even know what it’s taking.”

He looked up at Tsukishima as he finished and Tsukishima looked right back.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed; but, I’m not exactly one for letting others tell me what to do,” Tsukishima said slowly. “Including forces of nature.”

“How many times has being Jack nearly gotten you hurt,” Akiteru pressed. “How many times have you nearly been killed for it?”

“Not enough,  _ apparently,  _ if I’m still alive to suffer through this conversation.” Tsukishima took a step forward, barely a step away if Akiteru was actually solid. “I was right. You are a fool and, even worse, a  _ naive  _ fool with good intentions. The Hawks are using you. If they  _ really  _ wanted to live in a country not ‘controlled’ by magic, they’d move to Nohebi and get used to the sand. Vigilantes, coups, militant groups, they’ll always come up with excuses on why they’re more noble, why they’re the hero of the story.” He scoffed. “And who knows? Maybe they even believe it. Look at history. Millions have died for so-called moral superiority.”

He looked up and smirked. “In the end, what the Hawks want is  _ power.  _ And they’ll kill any one to get it. Even me. So don’t pretend you’re oh so noble.”

“They won’t kill you,” Akiteru said softly.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “They will if they think they can. That’s how these things work.”

“They won’t,” Akiteru looked away. “I was my condition for working with them.”

Tsukishima stopped, feeling a strange ringing in his ears.

Akiteru closed his eyes. “I….I’m sorry about your friend--the Ace.”

“You’re sorry,” he repeated, calmer than he felt like he was hearing himself say it more than making the conscious effort.

“They needed a Suit member to make the plan work,” Akiteru continued. “When they found out the Ace of Spades knew about them….” He took a breath. “I don’t want anyone to die. Please, believe me about that, I’m  _ trying  _ to keep as many safe as possible.” 

Tsukishima laughed, a cold, unpleasant sound. “Do you really think that means anything?”

Akiteru looked up, eyes wide. “It’s what I can do. I can’t stop everything.”

Tsukishima kept laughing. “ _ You,  _ I still can’t believe of all the people,  _ you  _ were the one to take him down. You’re an idiot and a coward. Pathetic.”

“I’m doing everything I can,” Akiteru insisted.

“That’s the sad part.” Tsukishima shook his head. “The  _ pacifist  _ trying to fight a war. So scared about the big bad magic controlling everything and you can’t even pick a side.” The laughter finally trailed off as Tsukishima met Akiteru’s eyes. “If you want to  _ save people,  _ then you wouldn’t be trying to start a coup. But instead, you’re here messing around on both sides because you can’t even decide what  _ you _ want--and let’s not pretend that’s the  _ magic _ ’s fault.”

Tsukishima stepped back, curling his lip at the man who disgusted him. “Word of advice from a stranger, figure out your own life before you try to tell anyone else how to live theirs. And, also,” his tone dropped, voice dead and flat, “don’t even fucking pretend you’re doing this for me.”

Tsukishima was done. 

Akiteru might be an idiot; but, Tsukishima knew with something near instinct that he’d already gotten all the information he could for tonight. And it only was partly to do with the fact that if he was here any longer, he’d try to strangle Akiteru--lack of physical presence or not--and it was never smart to attack magic without a plan.

“We’re not strangers, Kei,” Akiteru whispered from behind him. “We’re brothers. We’ll always be.

Tsukishima didn’t turn around.

But, he did stop--only for a second, the span of a statement.

“No. I already have a brother; you killed him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is soooooo late. Sorry, guys! But, please know I will always appreciate all the support you give this story and--because it's right after Thanksgiving for me--let me just say how grateful I am to all of ya'll!
> 
> Next Post Date: estimated December 12-13 (this is my final week of classes, so it might be a day or two late depending on schedule; but not as much as this one was)
> 
> Always feel free to find me on tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


	13. Chapter 13

_ 13 Years Prior _

_ It was an all around pleasant evening in Spades and Tsukishima was in as foul a mood as a twelve year old boy could be. _

_ What made the matter worse was that, as much as he wouldn’t admit it, Tsukishima was a very mature boy in some ways and a very immature boy in a number of others. The  _ worst  _ of those moments being that when he’d worked himself well and truly into a snit, he had a terrible propensity to drag down everyone with the misfortune to be around him. _

_ In time, he’d learn to grow out of some of it. But, for those that knew him growing up, well…. _

_ Put simply, an upset Tsukishima Kei could be a very cruel thing. _

_ In that way, it was both fortunate and unfortunate that his primary target was usually Hinata. Fortunate because Hinata was possibly the only person alive that could go up against a sharp tongued Tsukishima and come out completely unscathed and smiling. Unfortunate because that typically meant Tsukishima came out of those confrontations in an even worse mood only now with an insistent Ace committed to pestering the shit out of him until he cracked. _

_ And, yes, maybe Suga and Takeda did feel a little guilty for letting their charges duke it out in what basically amounted to a verbal cage match. But, for now, they honestly just thought the kingdom was doing the best it could to survive Hinata and Tsukishima’s shared adolescence….with the help of a very well stocked alcohol cabinet. _

_ Point being most days the method generally worked out. _

_ This was not most days. _

_ Tsukishima slammed into his room with clenched teeth and a bloodless face. _

_ Hinata didn’t look up from the notes spread out on his bed. “Huh, so magic training didn’t go well?” _

_ “It went fine,” Tsukishima bit out. _

_ It did not go fine. Actually, it went about as terrible as it could go. Tsukishima’s head still hurt from staring at a Fates’ cursed piece of paper for over an hour before he’d finally gotten something to work and accidentally ended up setting fire to a priceless oil painting from the Second Reign. One of Tsukishima’s favorites, actually, which is probably why his attention wavered to it right before it burst into flames.  _

_ Suga kindly suggested they try another day and hurried him out of the office so Suga could clear the smoke. Apparently, Tsukishima was working too much on thinking instead of feeling the magic, whatever that was supposed to mean. Only apparently that meant Tsukishima would probably never be a great Mage--didn’t have that intuitive understanding for it. Which apparently meant there were things even a Jack couldn’t understand. Which was absolutely unacceptable. _

_ “Suga told me I was great at it.” Tsukishima scoffed. “Much better than  _ you  _ did.” _

_ Hinata just shrugged, unbothered. “Yeah, magic’s kind of weird. Throwing a knife’s a lot simpler.” _

_ “Well, then simple should be right up your alley.” Tsukishima sat on his bed to fume. “Great for a spy, of course. Just keep throwing knives and scaling buildings without a single useful idea piercing your thick skull. I suppose you’ll be expecting me to do anything that needs actual thought.” _

_ “Isn’t that your job?” _

_ Tsukishima grit his teeth. “Amazing, in the past, it seems  _ other  _ Aces of Spades were able to do both at the same time. I guess our generation just got the short end of the stick.” He sent him a withering look. “Emphasis, of course, on  _ short. _ ” _

_ Hinata finally looked up and Tsukishima felt a vicious thrill of satisfaction at the sight of a frown. _

_ Then, Hinata sighed. “Oh, you’re in a  _ mood,  _ aren’t you? Sorry, Tsuki, I don’t really have time to do this tonight. Ukai gave me all these papers to read. He wants me to start on real missions in a few months. Won’t that be awesome?” _

_ Despite the words, there was a certain tension around Hinata’s shoulders. _

_ Tsukishima zeroed in on it. “Hmm, you nervous?” _

_ Hinata frowned.  _ “No.”

_ Lie. _

_ “Really,” and, now, that Tsukishima had found his advantage he let his words go slow and contemplative, “I would be.” _

_ “Well, yeah, that’s because you’re bad at sneaking in places. Even Ukai said so.” Hinata argued stiffly. “This is an undercover assignment, I’ll be fine.” _

_ Tsukishima tsked under his breath, not sure if he was more annoyed at the reference to  _ another  _ thing he hadn’t yet mastered or more pleased because apparently Hinata had decided to fight back. It was always more fun when he got under Hinata’s skin, too. _

_ And Hinata was Hinata. _

_ Which meant Tsukishima never worried about holding back. _

_ “Not good enough yet, though,” Tsukishima crossed over to Hinata’s side of the room, better to smirk down at him. “If so, you’d already be going on missions. I hope it’s not what I think.” _

_ “It’s probably not.” Hinata wasn’t even pretending to read the papers anymore. _

_ “I don’t know. I’m pretty smart, you know. Smarter than you.” Tsukishima tapped his chin. “Do you want to know why I think they haven’t let you go on missions?” _

_ Hinata huffed. “Ukai said I’m too young.” _

_ “I bet they think you’ll mess up,” Tsukishima goaded. “I bet they’re worried they spent all that time training you and, then, you’ll fail so badly, they’ll have to wait for a new Ace. You made them waste all their time on you.” _

_ Hinata blinked, confusion surfacing up through the annoyance. “They don’t need a new Ace? They’ve got me.” _

_ Tsukishima snorted. “You can’t really think the Fates will let you keep your Mark if you can’t do what you’re supposed to? What good are you to the kingdom, then?” _

_ Tsukishima very purposefully didn’t think of a burning oil painting and a stealth assignment he just couldn’t get right. He was the future Jack; he’d find a way to learn it. That’s what he was born to do. _

_ The building frustration that had been burning in Hinata had, meanwhile, evaporated. Leaving Hinata to just shrug off the insult with nothing more than a moment of baffled confusion.  _

_ Tsukishima glared. _

_ Hinata turned back to his notes. “Oh, I’m not really worried about that. And I’m pretty sure the Fates don’t just take a Mark away for failing one mission. I think you gotta do something big--you know, like the rumors about Hearts’ Ace. Either way, I’ll keep my Mark or I won’t. There’s not really any point thinking about it now, right? That’ll just slow me down.” _

_ Tsukishima utterly despised Hinata. He swore, the other boy was the most irritating, oblivious  _ idiot  _ he’d ever met. _

_ Who even thought like that? _

_ “You’re really not worried about failing,” Tsukishima mocked. _

_ “Of course, I’m worried about failing,” Hinata said calmly. “Why do you think I’m looking through everything? I’m just not worried about losing my Mark.” _

_ Tsukishima wanted to strangle him, instead he just huffed. “Must be nice to be so confident. I assume you’ve got a wonderful backup plan, too, once you lose your Mark and move out of the palace.” _

_ Hinata looked up. “Why would I move out of the palace?” _

_ Tsukishima rolled his eyes, turning away. Annoying, Tsukishima might as well just go to bed if nothing he’d say would even get past Hinata’s stupidly oppressive optimism. _

_ “Why would they let you stay if you’re not the Ace? You don’t see hordes of other kids wandering around here, do you? Fates, what a nightmare.” _

_ He heard Hinata pause. “Takeda and Suga wouldn’t kick me out.” _

_ “Who knows?” Tsukishima set about getting his sleep tunic. “But, I definitely wouldn’t let you stay. Though, it would mean I get my own room back. So, maybe, there is a bright side to all of this.” _

_ Hinata didn’t respond, long enough for Tsukishima to change for bed and cast one look back to his roommate, assuming he’d gone back to studying. _

_ Hinata hadn’t gone back to studying. Instead, he was staring at Tsukishima with an odd frown pulling down his face. _

_ “What,” Tsukishima demanded. _

_ Hinata got up, walking slowly to Tsukishima’s side, still with that strange look he had on. _

_ “You really wouldn’t care about me if I wasn’t the Ace,” he asked. _

_ Tsukishima scoffed without thinking. “Oh, please, I barely care now.” _

_ The shove came too fast and too hard for Tsukishima to even think about blocking before he was suddenly on his ass and with his head whacking hard against the wall.  _

_ “OW! HINATA, WHAT THE--” _

_ “You’re such an asshole!” Hinata shouted; but, his eyes were wet and Tsukishima froze. _

_ He didn’t get a chance to speak before Hinata was stomping out of the room, slamming the door behind him hard enough to rattle the stones. _

_ Tsukishima stared after him, confused at what even just happened. _

_ It was  _ Hinata,  _ after all. They fought daily--more than daily--and Tsukishima had said far worse things than implying he’d kick him out. Fates, he threatened to kick Hinata out on a weekly basis. Hinata always took it with a laugh, a smile, or a bristled retort. _

_ Hinata didn’t cry. He never actually pushed him, not like he meant it, not for years ever since he’d started training with Ukai. _

_ Eventually, Tsukishima shrugged it off. Hinata was probably just more bothered than he was showing about the mission. The more important thing is that Tsukishima’s head was now throbbing even more than it had to be which meant he’d probably never get to sleep. And it was all Hinata’s fault. _

_ What Tsukishima didn’t consider was that even Aces bled eventually--with the right knife, with the proper amount of force. _

_ When Hinata came back the next morning, tired but smiling again, Tsukishima didn’t apologize. _

_ He never did. _

\-------

There was a knock on the door and Tsukishima glared at it, feeling poison on his tongue and a headache behind his eyes.

He swallowed the first back with practice. “Come in.”

The door slid open and instead of the blonde hair he expected, he was instead met with dark eyes and freckles. Tsukishima’s shoulders relaxed.

“Morning,” Yamaguchi said softly.

“Is it?” Tsukishima frowned. “I thought you’d be Yachi.”

“She’s the one who sent me,” Yamaguchi admitted, coming to stand by his desk. “Apparently, King Kageyama and Queen Suga requested you for breakfast.” He smiled. “For some reason, she thought you’d rather hear it from me.”

Tsukishima let himself smile back. “Imagine.”

“It’s almost like you like me or something,” he teased.

“Or something,” Tsukishima echoed, reaching out and threading his hand against the other’s. 

It was funny, really. Tsukishima had never seen the point of all the minutiae of dating that people talked about. That was more Hinata’s thing--the  _ people pleaser,  _ ugh. For Tsukishima, it seemed like a waste of time, honestly. He was busy and who really cared about flowers that would fade in a week or walks by a lake that didn’t particularly change from day to day. It seemed overly complicated at its finest and at worst, strikingly unnecessary. It was a relationship; it wasn’t complicated. A series of acceptance or rejections and, then, you moved on or got to something more interesting.

Gestures had no point.

But, right now--for the last few months, actually--Tsukishima found he might actually enjoy the smaller things. He liked looking at his desk and seeing the books Tadashi had picked for him. He liked seeing his flowers still sitting in the library even after he had to leave. And he thought he might really like having a hand against his and knowing it was there.

“I think I’m getting old,” Tsukishima remarked.

Yamaguchi hummed, running a thumb under his eyes. “You do look tired.”

“I didn’t sleep.”

“Bad dreams?”

“Bad thoughts,” he corrected.

Yamaguchi smiled. “Any you’d like to share?”

Tsukishima shook his head. “It was just a memory--an old one. Before I was even a teenager so…..Fates, it’s been over a decade now. It wasn’t even an  _ important  _ memory. I don’t know why I’m thinking about it now. You can’t change memories.”

“I don’t know about that.” Yamaguchi shrugged. “You can’t change a memory. But, I think you can learn from it. That’s why they’re there, after all.” He tilted his head. “So, what do you think you’ve learned?”

Tsukishima snorted. “That I was always going to make a terrible Mage.”

Yamaguchi laughed, leaning down to kiss him--more of a peck than anything, but Tsukishima could feel the smile along his lips before he leaned back. “Well, I guess we can’t have everything.”

“Says who?”

Yamaguchi rolled his eyes. “Sorry to tell you, even you can’t be perfect, Kei. Take for now, you’re definitely going to be late for breakfast. And with  _ Suga,  _ too. That’s basically a war crime.”

“I’ve done worse.” Tsukishima stood anyway. “There’s another thing. I learned that Suga and Takeda probably deserve some kind of a reward. I don’t think I was the easiest child to manage.”

“No,  _ you _ ,” Yamaguchi deadpanned.

Tsukishima swatted at him, getting up to leave. “Whatever it was, Hinata probably started it.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“What utter betrayal.” 

Yamaguchi just grinned, following him over to the door.

Tsukishima hesitated before opening it, the next words flowing out without his conscious say so. “When I met Akiteru, he apologized. About Hinata….maybe about everything, it was hard to tell.”

Tsukishima wasn’t sure why he said that--especially not now. Wasn’t sure why he cared.

“What did you say,” Yamaguchi asked carefully, stopping with him and threading his hand back through his.

“What does it matter?” Tsukishima opened the door. “What does an apology change?”

Yamaguchi squeezed his hand. “About as much as memories, I suppose. It’s about what you learn from them.”

Tsukishima just hummed. 

Maybe that was true; but, if so, Tsukishima had no idea what he was supposed to learn from apologies he hadn’t even bothered to give.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Hinata had never really thought of himself as a nervous person.

It was kinda a bad idea to be jumping at shadows when your job title was literally spy and assassin. So, yeah, Hinata  _ generally  _ had a pretty good handle on what kind of senses meant  _ danger  _ and what just meant annoying.

Watching Tendou was driving him to a heart attack.

No, really, Hinata had never been more tense in his entire life and that included literal life or death fights.

The worst--- _ the worst-- _ was that Tendou wasn’t even doing anything--yet! The embodiment of chaos had apparently decided to wander haphazardly around the deck, striking up conversation or hanging precariously over the ship’s side. Nothing, absolutely nothing that implied the ship or any of its crewmates were in danger of exploding or spontaneously combusting or anything.

He was even whistling.

Hinata twitched.

Kuroo leaned in beside him. “You seem tense.”

“Do I?  _ Really, _ ” Hinata muttered darkly, not taking his eyes off where Tendou was making a remarkable effort to cajole Sakunami into sea shanties.

Kuroo raised a brow.

Hinata sighed, making a conscious effort to relax. “Sorry, just focused.”

Honestly, this entire mission was going to turn him into  _ Tsuki  _ if he wasn’t careful. Bleh.

“Sooooooo,” Kuroo nodded at Tendou. “Who’s he?”

“Just a friend,” Hinata said. He really had no clue what excuse Tendou wanted him to use, so for now he’d just go with the one available.

“Yeah,  _ sure _ .” Kuroo snorted. “Really, who is he?”

Hinata turned up with big eyes. “I can’t have friends?”

“No, you can have friends.” Kuroo held up his index finger. “In fact, because I’m so nice, you can have a free pass for exactly ‘one random friend showing up on a mysterious blockaded island’ and I won’t ask anything.” He pointed at Yudai. “And look who already used that up. So, who’s the new guy?”

Hinata groaned. “You’re not going to believe me.”

Kuroo rolled his eyes. “Hinata, I think we’re way past the trust stage of our relationship.” He nodded at Tendou. “Does he really know magic?”

“Yes, he knows magic.”

That wasn’t even the part that was bad for Hinata’s health.

“Is he good at it,” Kuroo pressed.

Hinata thought about that for a second, trying to figure out how to encompass the sheer magical force of a  _ Fate _ as ‘good’.

“He’s even better than Suga,” Hinata settled on.

Kuroo’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “Seriously?”

Hinata nodded grimly. “He’s better than all the Queens combined.” Kuroo had started to frown. “No,  _ really,  _ he is. If anything, that’s  _ underestimating  _ him.”

“That’s impossible,” Kuroo said flatly.

He shrugged. “Not for everyone.”

Then, Hinata hesitated, looking down at Tendou to find him well and truly preoccupied. He supposed….well, Kuroo was an Ace just like Hinata. The Fates were supposed to help all of the Card’s Suits. And, even more, if Tendou didn’t want Hinata to tell, he’d have probably mentioned that, right?

Applying logic to any part of Tendou hurt Hinata’s head so he just went for it.

“Tendou’s a Fate,” Hinata whispered. “He’s Chaos.”

Kuroo stepped back.

“I’m serious,” Hinata said. “The two Fates that created Cards--Order and Chaos.” He pointed at Tendou. “That’s  _ Chaos _ . He’s really here.”

Kuroo stared, not speaking.

Hinata sighed. “It’s okay. It’s a lot to take in.”

The reaction he didn’t expect was for Kuroo to start laughing, throwing back his head and practically howling loud enough to be heard over the waves and the wind.

“Uh,” Hinata started.

“Oh, man,” Kuroo was still snickering, wiping his eyes as he went, “you and Tsukishima  _ really  _ care about your secrets, don’t you? Is he another spy? What, some kind of informant?” He patted Hinata’s shoulder. “It’s alright. I guess you don’t  _ have  _ to tell me if you’re going for Fates as your last option.”

Hinata’s jaw dropped. “What?”

“I’ll just assume he’s one of your and Tsukishima’s guys, okay,” Kuroo continued. A pause. “The magic thing is still true, though, right? That one’s going to be important. We need to come up with a better story for Kenji, too. I think he’s starting to get suspicious.”

Hinata spluttered. “I’M TELLING THE  _ TRUTH! _ ” He lowered his voice to a hiss. “Tendou  _ is _ a Fate! He’s Chaos!”

Kuroo rolled his eyes. “You’re telling me  _ that guy  _ is a Fate? The most powerful magical spirits in the world and only supposed to even think about showing up in the most dire times imaginable--like the entire country on its last leg kind of thing.”

On the deck, Tendou had somehow corralled Obara, Sakunami, and Koganegawa in and was in the middle of teaching them the dirtiest limericks Hinata had ever heard. Koganegawa looked red enough to pass out.

“Yes,” Hinata said emphatically. “That’s  _ him _ !”

Kuroo just looked amused. Hinata was going to  _ murder  _ him.

“Well, seems like a nice day,” Kuroo gestured to the blues sky. “And I don’t seem to be dying and neither do you, so why’s he here now?”

Hinata nearly pulled his hair out. “He’s on vacation!”

Kuroo nearly fell down laughing, looked at Hinata’s face and, then, laughed some more.

“We’ve  _ got _ to come up with a better story, okay? You’re supposed to be better at those,” Kuroo shook his head, standing up and patting Hinata’s back. “Alright, thanks for the laugh. Get some sleep, got it? You kinda do look tense--like  _ more _ tense. It’s making me nervous.”

And, then, Kuroo left. Hinata just watched him, not even able to form words.

He stared blankly at the deck while Tendou finished his impromptu teaching lesson and skipped over to Hinata.

“What’s up, Tea Cup?” Tendou winked. “What’s new, Shorty Q?”

“I hate you,” Hinata said tiredly. “I think I actually hate you.”

“Aww,” Tendou cooed, pinching his cheek.

And, then, the entire ocean blew up.

Hinata fucking knew it.

A geyser shot out from the middle of the waves, nearly capsizing the entire ship and Hinata scrambled to grab onto the railing in time. Around the rest of the crew had started yelling, running for the ropes. Kenji shot out of the cabin and immediately barked out orders.

Hinata glared at Tendou. “Why?”

Tendou giggled. “Believe it or not, this actually wasn’t me. I think we have company, hmm?”

Hinata frowned, about to ask before suddenly the rushing abruptly stopped and everything went  _ still _ .

Actually still--completely and unnaturally still.

The entire ocean surface, for roughly half a mile in all directions, went utterly flat.

It was the most eerie thing Hinata had ever seen and--by the way the rest of the crew had come to a halt, whispering and staring over the side--he thought he wasn’t the only one.

Tendou hummed. “Well, that is impressive, isn’t it? Gotta remember this one.”

“What’s happening,” Hinata asked, both hands immediately going to the knives hidden in his tunic.

Then, the fog started.

Billows of chilling mist swept all around the ship until it blocked out the sun, casting everything in muted grey.

“The ocean,” Onagawa yelled out, hands white on the railing, “it’s...it’s  _ freezing!” _

Large cracks and swirls of white had broken out on the surface, smoothing briefly only to be cracked apart in large bubbles.

“No,” Kenji said flatly. “It’s boiling.”

Another geyser bubbled up again, focused and more contained.

….only this time, there was something inside of it.

A bubble or some kind of sphere, perfectly hung in the water and slowly being pushed up.

Kuroo ran across the deck, leaning in beside Hinata. He took one look at the ocean and grinned. “Show off.”

Hinata blinked, looking back at the bubble.

Oh.

The globe of water rose out like the very ocean itself was lifting it to the ship. The moment it went level with the deck, it broke apart.

A single figure stepped out of it and onto the wood.

Lev Haiba, the Queen of Diamonds and the Mage of Water, stared out from the mist and the water falling back around him like it was waiting for his order.

“Fates,” Obara whispered.

Tendou snickered. “Not quite.”

And, then, Lev saw Kuroo and beamed. “Oh, hey! There you are! Yaku said I should--”

Lev slipped on a patch of wet deck and fell flat on his face.

Kuroo howled, practically folding himself in half as he kept laughing. So, at least someone was having a good day.

“Ow!” Lev rubbed his head. “I didn’t think it would be that slippery!”

“And who’s fault is that?” Kuroo ambled across the deck and helped him up, slapping his back as he did. “Watch we’re you’re pointing those geysers next time. You almost capsized the ship.”

Lev pouted. “I’m still learning how to navigate.” Then, his eyes lit up. “Hey, but did you see the rest of it, though? I figured if I alternated the hotter currents with the colder, then, I could move it  _ and  _ get air in! And it worked! Ahhh!” He puffed up. “Nekomata’s going to be so impressed next time he visits!”

Kuroo’s smile was fond. “Nekomata’s going to ask if you’ve been studying basic theory before you worry about inventing new stuff.”

Lev looked down, grumbling under his breath. “But, a lot of the theory’s so boring! Only Suga ever keeps the cool books.” He grinned at Kuroo. “Hey, you miss me?”

“Yeah.” Kuroo messed up his hair. “Believe it or not, I actually did. Glad you made it, Lev.”

“So,” Kenji said, significantly less amused, “anyone else going to make introductions? I’m still not sure how my ship turned into a vacation spot.”

Lev straightened up, waving with all the enthusiasm of a new puppy. “I’m Lev Haiba! I’m the Queen of Diamonds!” He stuck out his hand. “Nice to meet you! Sorry about….uh, kind of almost destroying your ship. I promise not to do it again.”

Kenji shook the hand, looking more skeptical than ever. “Thanks.” He looked around at the rest of the crew before nodding. “I guess we better show you around.” He glanced at Kuroo. “We need to talk.  _ Tonight.” _

“Sure,” Kuroo agreed easily, stepping back and leaning on Hinata’s shoulder. “Looks like the gang’s all here.”

Hinata nodded, glancing over to where Tendou had wandered off again, where Yudai seemed to still be unsure what he should be doing, and the rest of the crew was still staring at the water as if wondering whether it was going to explode again.

“Yeah,” Hinata said.

Everyone was here; Hinata just hoped they survived it.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“Late,” Suga lightly accused the moment Tsukishima got in the door.

“If there’s still breakfast, how can I be late,” Tsukishima retorted, grabbing an apple off the stand and sitting in the sole empty chair in the King’s suite that wasn’t covered in books or notes.

The King himself didn’t bother to look up from his book….which, actually, Tsukishima was fine with since he’d never been particularly eager about conversations with Kageyama in the first place.

Of course, because it was  _ Kageyama _ he dashed those hopes a moment later by speaking. Another point to Tsukishima’s growing theory Hinata and Kageyama had a pact to aggravate him to an early grave.

“We found something about bloodmagic,” Kageyama said bluntly.

And, then, stopped talking.

“Truly,” Tsukishima remarked, “your gifts for oration know no bounds, Your Highness.”

Kageyama glared and Suga slipped seamlessly between them, pouring Tsukishima some tea. “Kageyama’s the one who found it, actually. He’s been searching practically every free moment we had--like you, too, actually.” 

The last was said in a warning--to both of them. And both Tsukishima and Kageyama grimaced at the faint “ _ be nice”  _ laced through Suga’s tone.

Sure, like being nice had ever been either of their styles.

Kageyama and Tsukishima glared at each other instead.

“Tt,” Kageyama broke first, “I found some stories that talk about bloodmagic not taking over the body. They were soldier’s writings more than anything, so, I don’t know how much we can trust them; but, if they’re true, bloodmagic can do smaller things--like suggestions. Like, I don’t know, like telling someone they should only drink milk or something. Something they wouldn’t notice.”

Tsukishima stared at him. “Why would  _ anyone  _ tell someone to drink milk?”

“I don’t--” Kageyama huffed. “It was just an example. Milk’s good! It builds bones. Shut up!” He released a tight breath. “Anyway, apparently, the suggestions can be more subtle. Harder to notice; but, easier to break when you do. Only really powerful Blood Mages can pull them off without pulling the victim to full control. Do you think Akiteru could?”

“You know,” Tsukishima said conversationally, “I’m getting real tired of people assuming I know  _ anything  _ about a man who I’ve only met once and may share a few stray genetics with.”

“I think it’s something we should still watch out for,” Suga stepped in. “Hinata described Kuroo being under control as stiff--almost like a puppet. Control like that couldn’t go long without being noticed. But, a suggestion? Just a couple things off? That would be terrible when it comes to infiltration.”

Kageyama nodded. “Anyway, they can only do it when they have blood, bone, and hair anyway; so, it’s probably not that much worse than full control. Especially if we get lucky and Akiteru can’t even do it.”

“I haven’t felt particularly lucky lately. Let’s assume he can.” He arched a brow at Suga. “You’ve already told the other Suits I’m guessing.”

Suga nodded. “I sent the letters this morning.”

“What have you found,” Kageyama glared back at Tsukishima.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “Asahi’s been looking into Futakuchi--trying to track down anyone who immigrated before the Iron Wall went up and get any information we can. All he’s found is a few rumors about bloodmagic in one of the poorer southern islands. Something about a few families that used it for miracle healing.” He sighed. “But, even they were supposed to be wiped out by a tsunami or something a couple of decades ago. After that, nothing and it seems Futakuchi treats it with the same distaste as Cards does.” He grimaced. “Which, of course, means I have no idea how Akiteru was able to learn it enough to control  _ Kuroo  _ or--come to think of it--why he even ended up in Futakuchi in the first place.”

Suga hummed. “What are Shimizu and Noya working on?”

“Identifying any Hawks members they can find,” Tsukishima said. “It’s not much; but, at least it seems to be slowing down the rumors.”

“Not enough,” Suga said grimly. “Yachi tells me the rumors are getting worse, especially here around the capital.” He shifted in his seat. “I’m….I’m worried what will happen if nothing changes soon. It was bad enough Kuroo was missing at the Diamonds Festival...if both him and Lev are missing for Hearts in Spring, it’s only going to be worse. We need to have the people trust us, know they can count on the other Suits, that Cards stands united. Which means the last thing we need is rumors about Aces murdering each other.” He paused. “Especially if the rumors hit a head in  _ Hearts,  _ of all places. If anyone has a reason not to dislike the Suits, it’s them…..though, I suppose, that’s understandable.”

Kageyama and Tsukishima exchanged a look.

Suga just looked tired. 

Of all the kingdoms, Hearts was the quickest to move to suspicion--a lasting remnant of the Hearts Civil War that ended only a decade ago and an Ace and Queen that raised war against their own people. In time, and with the help of Iwaizumi pulling it back together and now with a full Suit back on the thrones, opinion was shifting back. That still didn’t mean that Hearts was particularly trusting...and that included the other Suits that had voted to sit out of the war.

Kageyama, Tsukishima, and Hinata had been declared too young for that particular Suits meeting. Suga was not.

Tsukishima had never asked what Suga had voted. But, he’d also never had to.

Interfering without request in how another Suit managed their kingdom--especially with only limited knowledge of the situation--would have broken centuries of tradition and agreements. 

It could have destroyed the equal balance that united Cards.

It could have ended the war early.

It could have saved lives.

Tsukishima sipped his tea and kept his face entirely composed.

“Anyway,” Suga forced levity back into his voice, “I think it’s a good thing Hearts decided to move the festival earlier.” 

“So,” Kageyama frowned. “Are we all going?”

“Oh.” Suga leaned back. “I hadn’t thought of that. The people will be expecting one of us to stay behind; but, with Hinata….

“Either one of us stays behind to watch for the kingdom and everyone wonders if we just confirmed the rumors,” Tsukishima finished. “Or we all three go and leave the kingdom unprotected with threats of a possible attack;  _ but,  _ the people assume our Ace is fine and stayed here.” He sighed. “The second option would help the rumors.”

“But, leave us unprotected,” Suga commented.

“Is the first really that bad,” Kageyama asked. “I mean...it’s not like they’re not used to only two of us going before. I could stay behind--they’re used to that.”

Tsukishima shook his head. “Any other time, yes. Right now, all it would do is cause us a bigger headache and right when the kingdom’s split for the festival.” He shrugged. “Besides, it’s not like Yachi wasn’t  _ technically  _ in charge last time. Between her and the spies, we’ll be fine.”

Suga tapped his fingers along his cup. “I still think one of us should stay.”

“I vote all of us go,” Tsukishima argued just as clearly.

They both looked at their King and Tsukishima held back an eye roll. Hinata would probably be thrilled, he was always nagging Tsukishima to hear Kageyama out more.

Another point for the death-by-aggravation list.

As if Tsukishima didn’t know Kageyama, the guy who stayed in his tower for over half his life wouldn’t--

“We should go,” Kageyama said. “All of us.”

“Seriously,” Tsukishima asked before he could help himself.

Kageyama gave him a scowl and, Fates, at least that was more familiar than Kageyama actually agreeing with him.

“Yeah,” Kageyama looked at Suga, “it’s like you said. If things come to a head, the worst place it could be is Hearts. So, that’s where we should be if it happens. We have the spies and the guards back here to protect the castle. That means it’s our job to protect it from outside.” He looked down and huffed. “Staying here….it’s not enough. Not if people could get hurt. I want to be there to stop it. I want to try.”

Suga and Tsukishima had both pulled back to stare at him.

Slowly, Tsukishima shrugged, never one to let a good chance pass.

“As you say, My King.”

  
  
  


\-------

Safe to say, now with a Queen of Diamonds, two Aces, one embodiment of chaos, one Hyakuzawan King, Aone, and--of course--the Crown Prince of Futakuchi himself, well, Kenji’s office was starting to feel kind of cramped.

Hinata managed anyway. Times like these, he’d never admit he was sorta glad he was shor--er, that he wasn’t abnormally tall.

That said, did  _ all of them  _ have to be that tall--like half of a foot taller? That was definitely overkill, right? Yeesh, he was surrounded by actual giants!

Hinata did the best he could, sandwiched in between Yudai and Aone, and manfully resisted scaling a wall just because he could.

“Alright,” Kenji was saying, “if we want even a hope against Hotaka’s navy, we need more people. Even with a Mage on our side.” He tapped the map. “That’s why I’m sending Fukiage and Sakunami to try and get a meeting with the captain of the  _ Wave Dancer,  _ the fastest pirate ship I know.” He rolled his eyes. “Plus, Captain Nametsu likes them--for some reason--she’ll let them in. And if anyone can get in touch with the pirates as a whole, it’s her. If she calls, they’ll listen.”

Kenji rubbed the back of his neck. “The problem is convincing them to fight with us.”

“King Hotaka wishes to attack them, too?” Yudai frowned. “Why wouldn’t they help? Also,” he winced, “no offense, but I thought most pirates didn’t shy away from fighting.”

Kenji snorted. “Yeah, maybe that was true back in the old days. Fates, probably still true for a few now. But, most of Futakuchi’s more old pirates--the bloodthirsty ones--got shut out when the wall went up.” His gaze flicked to Kuroo. “Believe the plan was to let other countries deal with them.”

“Hearts and Nohebi got it worse than Diamonds,” Kuroo admitted, grimacing. “Most of them didn’t want to head that far north. Still a bitch to deal with, I remember that much.”

Kenji nodded, shoulders heavy. “Point is that most of the pirates nowadays are here because Hotaka’s been pushing out the old merchant ships in favor of his own trade ships. Those and the rich merchants are the only ones that can afford the taxes. For the rest,” he shrugged, “well, suppose they figured piracy’s better than starvation. Least it might give them enough to send back home.”

“So, we’re relying on a bunch of poor merchant ships turned pirates,. Kuroo sighed. “How much training are they going to need? Do they even know how to hold a sword?”

“If not, they’d be dead,” Kenji said bluntly. “Royal Navy ain’t much for free passes.” He waved a hand. “Anyway, beggars can’t be choosers. The hard part is going to be convincing them we’ve got enough of a shot to risk it. These aren’t people that got into piracy for the money and fights. They chose it for lack of something better. If they think  _ we’re  _ not something worth it, too, they won’t risk fighting. They’ll run….and hope they last long enough to be forgotten.”

“Do we have a plan to convince them,” Yudai questioned politely.

Kenji exchanged a look with Aone. “A bit of one.”

“Hmm, care to share,” Tendou teased from where he was brushing along the cabinets, picking up everything and not looking like he was listening one bit. He tapped a little wooden lion, broken and faded with age. He lifted it up, turning and running his finger along a half squiggly line on the bottom. “Awww, fascinating little carving. Fourth Reign, am I right?”

Kenji’s eye twitched. “Yes. Put it down.”

Tendou pouted, but obligingly popped it back on the shelf and trailed over to lean on Hinata. “So, yes, you will share? Yay!”

Kenji pinched his nose and sighed loudly. “I’ll share when I have to.” He narrowed his eyes. “Anyway, I think there’s something we need to clear the air about first. A  _ lie  _ we need to clear up.”

Hinata went still.

Kuroo shifted on his feet. “What are you talking about?”

“You might as well fess up.” Kenji smirked. “You really didn’t think any of us would notice? It wasn’t exactly subtle.”

Hinata tried to look as small and harmless as he possibly could, ignoring hard the nervous glances Lev and Yudai were sending him and the curious stare Aone directed towards him. Tendou was still grinning, looking around the room like this was the best show on the planet.

“What wasn’t subtle,” Hinata asked softly. “Um, Captain?”

Kenji’s smile sharpened. “Glad you asked!”

And, then, he pointed right at Hinata.

“You’re the Ace of Spades.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finished with finals for the semester!!!!! Thank you, guys, for your patience!
> 
> Next chapter is delayed a week because, ya know, Christmas which I'm giving myself off from writing. But, that said, I wish all of you a Merry Christmas, a Happy Holidays, or just a Really Wonderful Few Weeks in December! Have fun, be safe, enjoy yourselves because you guys are awesome and absolutely deserve awesomeness.
> 
> Next Chapter: January 2-3


	14. Chapter 14

_ 5 Years Prior _

_ Kenji finished hammering down the last board, watching it warily to make sure it didn’t pop up again. For the fourth time. Because it was a horrible traitor bored on his otherwise perfect ship. _

_ He watched the board, daring it. _

_ Somehow, he felt like the board was watching him back, testing him. _

_ Kenji held firm. _

_ The board held. _

_ Kenji grinned, satisfied. “Okay. What do you think?” _

_ “I think,” a voice answered--light and feminine in the way that was  _ definitely _ not Aone, “that it’s amazing this thing hasn’t sunk!” _

_ “Don’t listen to her,” Kenji soothed down the splintered wood. “You’re gorgeous.” _

_ Mai Nametsu leaned in next to him, shinny boots contrasting sharply with the ship’s...well, everything. “When you said you were still fixing her up, I didn’t think you meant practically  _ rebuilding  _ the thing.” _

_ Kenji flicked wood tarnish at her. “Why does Aone think you’re nice? You’re the meanest person I know.” _

_ “‘Cause compared to you, I’m a saint.” Nametsu smiled. “You sure about this, Kenji? This ship?” _

_ “She’s faster than she looks.” Kenji shrugged. “A lot faster than those weighted down Navy fuckers and that’s the important part, isn’t it? She doesn’t have to be beautiful for that.” _

_ Needles to say, the ship was still beautiful--mismatched sails and all. Because she was  _ his  _ ship, the one he’s been dreaming about for eight years. A real dream this time--more solid than anything he’d ever thought of as a kid--because this one he had to work for. _

_ So, yeah, as far as he was concerned,  _ The Last Resort  _ was the most beautiful ship he’d ever seen. _

_ Nametsu shook her head, teasing. “You’re making me regret sending Sakunami and Fukiage off with you. Should have checked if you were half blind before I gave you one of my best bookkeepers.” _

_ “Gave? Sent?” Kenji turned up his nose. “Please, they chose to come with me over your lame ass ship because they know I’m going to be an amazing captain.” _

_ Nametsu gave him a look. _

_ “....alright, you may have done some convincing,” Kenji said dismissively. “Don’t let it go to your head.” _

_ She sighed. “The real loss is you’re taking Aone with you.” _

_ “You can’t have Aone.” _

_ “Trust me, I know.” She rolled her eyes. “I’m going to figure out how you got that guy’s never ending loyalty Watch me.” _

_ “Good. If I ever figure it out, I’ll tell you.” _

_ “I guess you’ll be missed, too. A bit.” She pinched her fingers. “A really tiny bit. Mainly it’s going to be weird not having some strange guy messing up my rope lines and storing the cooking grease next to the cannon fuses.” _

_ “One Ttme!” Kenji kicked out at her. “Five years ago! Get over it!” _

_ “You don’t have to leave, you know.” She smiled. “Everyone knows Captain Ino’s planning on stepping down in a few years. She already asked me to be Captain; I could use a good First Mate. One I can trust.” _

_ He looked up at her. _

_ “Job’s open,” her lip quirked up, “since Aone’s probably busy and all.” _

_ “Already bought the ship,” he told her, gesturing around. _

_ “We can sell it,” she promised, she leaned on his shoulder. “Come on, starting a new ship on your own or First Mate to the best pirate ship in Futakuchi. You, me, and Aone. It could work.” _

_ “It would work,” Kenji said quietly. _

_ Nametsu sighed, offering him a small smile. “But, you’re still leaving, aren’t you?” _

_ “It’s too risky,” he said. _

_ She quirked a brow. “More risky than going off on your own?” _

_ “Yeah,” Kenji said. _

_ Because even a decade later, there was still a chance that people from the palace could find him. And, if they did, Kenji didn’t have any illusions that it would go well--for him or anyone that was left around. As a Captain, he could make the orders. He could find a plan that would save as many as he could. Mai would never let him do it on his own. _

_ So, he had to keep moving. _

_ He’d learned something about responsibility in the past ten years. _

_ He was never right to be a King; but, maybe he could still be a pretty good pirate. _

_ Nametsu looked at him. “One day, I’m going to find out what you and Aone keep trying to hide. And, then, I’m going to punch you for hiding it in the first place.” _

_ Kenji grinned. “Quit making promises you can’t keep, Mai.” _

_ Nametsu rolled her eyes, stepping back and turning for the ladder. “If you get killed out there, I’m going to murder both of you.” _

_ “Stop worrying,” Kenji called back. “We’ll be fine!” _

_ Yeah, everything was going to be just fine. This time Kenji knew exactly what he had to be. _

_ Besides, Captain Kenji Futakuchi sounded a lot better than Prince, anyway. _

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“You’re the Ace of Spades.”

The air was as quiet as if the entire room had suddenly been plunged into the darkest, deepest pit in the ocean. Hinata thought it felt like that, too, like tension pressing in on every side and impossible to escape.

It was hard to see past the finger pointing right at him; but, Hinata tried to take in the room, assessing for threats and making a plan. 

He saw how Kuroo’s hand had moved to his sword and Aone’s had moved likewise, how Lev’s eyes were flickering between them, and how King Yudai looked hesitant like he wanted to step in but hadn’t figured out if he should. Tendou was still leaning against his back and, honestly, Hinata didn’t even want to guess at his expression right now.

Kenji, meanwhile, was smiling--slow and satisfied like a cat that had finally circled in on its prey. He quirked a brow. “I’m curious. Are you still going to try to deny it?”

Hinata’s tongue was heavy and his mouth tasted like ash, trying frantically to come up with some lie that would be enough to be believed. 

The rest of the room was silent.

“No?” Kenji’s smile grew.

“How’d you figure it out,” Kuroo finally asked.

Kenji snorted. “Please, how could I  _ not _ ? It was so obvious. I almost can’t believe you guys manage to hide it from  _ anyone _ . But, I guess I’ll give you some benefit of the doubt for unusual circumstances.” He rolled his eyes, looking back towards Hinata. “I figured it out as soon as you stepped on my ship.”

Shit.

Tsuki really was going to kill him. Hinata knew something would break eventually; but, he could have sworn he’d done pretty well early on. He’d  _ at least  _ thought there would be more signs, more suspicious glances, something Hinata could read so he had time to come up with something.

Apparently, they’d all underestimated the heir of Futakuchi.

“Why didn’t you say anything,” Hinata asked. 

Kenji winked. “Curiosity, honestly. Wanted to see how long you guys thought this would work.” He paused. “Gotta say, though, none of you were subtle. But, Hinata, it’s you I’ve gotta thank the most.  _ You  _ were the most obvious about it, no offense. I probably wouldn’t have put it together that fast except for your lie.”

Okay, rude! That was just rubbing it in.

Hinata grimaced, trying to find a response when Kenji started speaking again.

“I mean look at the timeline,” Kenji said. “You really thought I was going to believe some Diamond servant went for a food run and just happened to run into both the King of Hyakuzawa and a  _ super _ suspicious guy that clearly is trained in magic and you can’t say hardly anything about.” He looked back. “I knew the second you got here. Obviously, you’re the Ace of Spades.” 

Only Kenji wasn’t looking at Hinata.

He was looking  _ behind  _ Hinata at….at….

Tendou abruptly started laughing.

_ What,  _ Hinata thought dazed.

Kenji wrinkled his nose. “Ugh, and can I just say, you’re  _ exactly  _ as creepy as I always imagined.”

Tendou was laughing so hard he was basically wheezing. “Yep, you got me. You really got me.” He drew up, trying to contain himself and mostly failing. “I’m totally and definitely the Ace of Spades.”

_ WHAT,  _ Hinata thought again.

“What so funny,” Kenji asked.

“Nothing.” Tendou wiped tears from his eyes. “We just, pft, we really thought we had you.”

“Have to try better than that.” Kenji flicked his gaze over to Kuroo. “Also, next time don’t even bother to send your servant to fetch another one of you Suit members.  _ Especially  _ when he brings back literally the shadiest guy I’ve ever met. How did you possibly think that was going to work?”

Looking more stunned than anything, Kuroo just nodded. Lev was gaping, staring between Kenji and Tendou like a sporting match.

_ No, seriously, _ Hinata blinked,  _ what was happening? _

“I….yeah, sorry, we really didn’t think you’d guess so fast that,” Kuroo waved a hand distractedly at Tendou, “....he’s the Ace of Spades.” 

_ What… _

No.

Wait.

He didn’t--

Of all the fucking-- 

Dang it! It was one thing to be figured out as the Ace of Spades; but, to  _ not be  _ in favor of someone else….that was crossing a line, like ten lines, this was the worst! 

“Creepy powerful stranger that speaks in fucking riddles shows up on the same day as Hyakuzawan’s King. Only an idiot wouldn’t put it together,” Kenji huffed. “You’re lucky I did, actually. How long were you not going to tell me we had a secret assassin hiding on my ship? “ He rolled his eyes. “It was a smart idea to call him here, though. We’ll need him for the fight. Imagine if we had him a month ago, things could’ve been a lot smoother.”

Hinata hated this mission. He hated this ship. He hated all of the Fates begotten Futakuchi Island and he could absolutely  _ not wait to go home! _

“Well, what can I say,” Tendou seemed to be having the time of his life, “the life of the Ace of Spades is very busy, you know. My life, of course, because--just like you said--I’m the Ace of Spades.” He cut off to snicker. “I  _ promise,  _ though, I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

No, it was worse than hatred. 

Hinata was having an out of body experience. He ascended to a higher plane of existence. That was how strong he did not want to be here right now. Physically he was still trapped in the most  _ annoying  _ conversation he’d ever been a part of; but, mentally he liked to think he was where things still made sense--like Kageyama’s room or Tsuki’s office. Yeah, he was there where he didn’t have to hear a single word of this.

He wondered if it was possible to spontaneously feel attuned with Tsuki’s normal exasperation on a near spiritual level. He got it now, he did, he swore he was going to be so much nicer to Tsuki now.

“Proof,” Aone reminded quietly, eyes narrowed at Tendou.

At the single word, Hinata’s faith in rationality briefly resurrected and he looked at Aone--kind, sweet, logical Aone, who was Hinata’s new favorite person--with hope in his eyes. Before he remembered that it was, you know, probably a good thing that they did think it was Tendou and definitely didn’t think Hinata was the Ace.

He should probably be helping this lie….probably.

“You don’t need proof,” Lev jumped in quickly, apparently less motivated by pettiness than Hinata. “I mean what even is proof? What? You want him to kill someone or something?”

Yes, because Tendou pretending to be the Ace was sort of-- _ definitely! _ \--a good thing, Hinata thought resigned. 

He needed to help Tendou out or--

Tendou snapped his fingers. “No need! I got proof right here!”

And, then, he rolled up his sleeve all the way up to his arm where a shining claimed Spade’s Mark-- _ Hinata’s  _ mark--laid right over the skin.

Nevermind. Fuck all of this.

Hinata was  _ done. _

Because it was the creepiest, weirdest, strangest, most skin crawling sensation to see  _ his  _ Mark on someone else’s body--especially when Hinata could still feel his own underneath his shirt. And it was  _ his Mark _ , down to the very edges and the faint familiar feel of magic. He had absolutely no idea how Tendou had even copied his Mark like that! That was supposed to be  _ impossible! _

Hinata sat down hard on the floor and put his head in his hands. It said something that no one else even seemed to notice.

_ Done.  _ He was so very done. __

From beyond the reaches of Hinata’s mortal coil, Lev made a gasping, wheezing sound that sounded dangerous. Hinata would be concerned if not for exactly how done he was.

“What.” Kuroo just starred. “How--I mean, yeah, because he’s, ah, totally the Ace. So, of course, he has the Mark!”

Lev actually might be choking. He was turning faintly purple. Yudai cautiously slapped his back. 

Hinata mused, staring blankly at the room. Maybe he’d become a farmer now and drag Kageyama and Tsukishima along with him. Yachi could do their accounting. Suga could sell their stuff down at the capital. That could work. And, the best part was he’d never have to be on a boat ever again!

He looked up at Aone. “Should I be a farmer?”

“Hmm,” Aone said, sounding, for once, distracted as he--like everyone else--stared at the Mark on Tendou’s arm. Tendou was still fucking laughing.

Kenji just smiled.

“It is good being right,” Kenji said, he looked smug at the rest of their expressions. “Okay, whatever, we already got the plan settled. I’ll let the rest of you Cards guys go and figure out what lie you want to tell the rest of the pirates--though,  _ try  _ to make it actually believable this time. If we’re lucky, we’ll meet with the rest of the pirates in a week. So, find something by then.”

“G-got it,” Lev stuttered with the half a breath he’d just managed to get back, still staring at the Mark on Tendou’s shoulder, who had moved on flexing his arm at anyone who would look.

Kenji looked at Hinata. Actually, looking at Hinata this time unless there was some  _ other  _ person behind him that was also totally-the-Ace-of-Spades-because-who-could- _ possibly _ -think-it-was-Hinata.

Okay, Hinata might be a little bit bitter. Not that he’d need to be, he was a farmer now and  _ Tendou _ could be the pretend Ace of Spades.

For the best.

It was all for the fucking best.

“Hinata,” Kenji said, “stay behind for a second, I need to talk to you?”

Good because Hinata wasn’t moving from this floor until things started making sense. Hinata blinked slowly. “Okay. Why?”

Kenji snorted. “Because believe it or not, this ship actually  _ does  _ need a food run and since your last one went so spectacularly, I thought I’d give you more specific instructions this time. Mainly, how to not bring back foreign dignitaries. Got it?”

“Oh.” Hinata was not pouting. “Alright.”

“Are you going to get up,” Kenji asked, sounding more amused than anything.

Hinata shook his head. “No.”

The rest of them filtered out while Hinata was still stewing in his spot and utterly ignoring the strange looks Lev and Kuroo kept sending him before looking back at Tendou.

The door shut behind them.

He sighed through his teeth. “What kind of food do you want, Captain?”

“Oh, that was just an excuse.” Kenji templed his hands, leaning forward. “I just wanted you to know that I figured out  _ your secret,  _ too.” 

Hinata stared.

“What secret,” he asked flatly.

Kenji ticked off his fingers. “Let’s see a new ‘servant’ that got dragged into this because he was apparently wandering around Diamonds’ castle at night, skilled with daggers but--according to Aone--you seem less interested in drawn out fights, snuck away from us the second we got to Futakuchi palace, plus knew how to get back to us without getting caught, clearly not great at remembering proper servant protocol, and--of course--you know how to pick a lock in under a minute.” He crooked an eyebrow. “Well, Hinata, you gotta know what I’m thinking here?”

It sounded….like an Ace.

Wait? Okay, no, Hinata was back with humanity but officially confused. If Kenji  _ had  _ guessed he was the Ace, why did he say it was Tendou? Did he figure out the Ace was Hinata? There was a rush of excitement and Hinata had to remind himself that  _ no,  _ foreign princes figuring out his secret identity was still a very bad thing.

But...

“I can  _ promise  _ you, Captain,” Hinata said. “I have absolutely no idea what you’re thinking.”

Kenji held up a hand. “Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me. I swear, I won’t even tell the Aces or that Queen guy. You can say it.”

“I really can’t,” Hinata said.

Kenji sighed. “Come on, Hinata, gig’s up. Sneaking into castles and picking locks, it’s not that much of a secret in the first place. I’m a  _ pirate,  _ you really don’t think I’d notice one of our own.”

Hinata couldn’t believe this.

“You think I’m a thief!” Hinata shouted, the force of it sending him back to his feet.

Kenji rolled his eyes. “You don’t have to get all offended. Like I said, I get it.  _ Really.  _ You gotta do what you gotta do. Not your fault a simple palace robbery got you sucked into this political mess. I got your back.”

Hinata gaped at him.

And, then, Hinata relied on literally every iota of training he’d ever had to keep his face calm and neutral. To maintain whatever cover he had to--that was the Ace of Spades’ job.

And Hinata was the Ace of Spades, thank you very much.

“Thank you, Captain.” He bowed his head. “I really appreciate it.” 

The things he did for his job. 

You know who didn’t have to deal with this? Farmers!

Kenji smiled, walking around the desk and ruffling his hair. “No problem. Plus, hey, the crew here likes you alright. Always a spot open if you chose to stay here.”

Hinata’s grin was well practiced. “Thanks, but...I kind of got a few people counting on me back home.”

Kenji’s eyes went distant “Yeah, I guess I got some of that, too.”

“So, I’ll just….” Hinata pointed at the door.

“Yeah, go on.” Kenji waved him on. “Apparently, I got a few letters to write.”

Hinata was a professional.

Hinata was the best fucking spy in the entire kingdom.

Which meant Hinata waited until he was out of the room and down the hall before giving in to screaming in frustration.

“Um,” Yudai stepped up in front of him, “hey, Hinata, I think I got Queen Lev to stop choking; but, about the Mark--”

“Yudai,” Hinata interrupted, staring up at the ceiling, “why does everyone think I’m a thief or a hooker before they think of Ace of Spades. Is it really  _ that _ hard?”

Yudai turned bright red and started to stammer. “Oh...well….I….”

Hinata looked up and caught a flash of bright red hair down the hall. “Nevermind, I gotta talk to someone.”

With a wealth of experience by now, Hinata had learned that letting Tendou talk is correlated highly when things went wrong. So, he didn’t even let him talk this time, grabbing the Fate by the collar and dragging him to the back of the ship where no one could hear them. 

And then Hinata punched him in the shoulder, hard because he’d survive.  _ “Why?” _

Tendou giggled. “Well, that’s a pretty terrible way to say thank you, little Ace! What do you mean  _ why,  _ because it was hilarious, of course. Awwww, and I thought you’d approve of one tiny little prank!”

Personally, even for the Ace of Spades, Hinata had always hated lying--even when it meant keeping people safe. One of the first things Ukai taught him was that simple was better and Hinata  _ liked  _ simple. In his experience, lying just made things a mess.

Case in point.

“What am I going to tell Kuroo and Lev,” Hinata asked.

Tendou smirked. “How could  _ I  _ possibly know what  _ you  _ talk about with others? I think you’re confusing Fates with mind readers now.”

Hinata punched his arm again because that was  _ not _ what he meant. “They saw the...the Mark on your shoulder. How am I going to explain how  _ another person  _ has my Mark? Best case scenario, they’ll think we somehow planned it beforehand and didn’t tell them. Worst case, they’ll think you found a way to fake Marks.” He blinked. “Actually, how did you fake it?”

Tendou snorted. “It’s  _ my magic  _ that makes up the Marks--well, mine and ‘Toshi’s, of course.” He rolled up his sleeve, poking at it again. “I really wouldn’t be much of a Fate if I couldn’t make another, now could I?”

Hinata stared at it, anger burning off to be replaced with something like nausea. “Is...is mine...?” He trailed off, not knowing quite how to ask.

Tendou winked, brushing his arm and the copied Mark vanished away in trails of black smoke. “Yours is a bit more permanent, I’m afraid. Well unless you  _ really  _ screw up.” He winked. “Not that I think you’re planning on it. Hmmm, though, not like it’s really my decision alone anyway--the rest of my magic handles that. But, I  _ do  _ still have a feel for the Marks, you know.”

No, Hinata did not know. Actually, he had barely any idea how the magic and the Fates behind Cards worked and he had a feeling that even  _ Suga’s  _ understanding was more theoretical than concrete answers.

So, Hinata asked. Because he wouldn't be much of a spy without being curious.

“But, it’s your magic,” Hinata said. “You’re a Fate. If you don’t control who’s born with Marks and who’s deemed unworthy, then what does?”

Tendou tipped his head back and, for the first time Hinata had ever met him, actually seemed to be seriously thinking about the question and how to parse down his words. It was an interesting sight to witness; Hinata couldn’t think of a time the Fate actually seemed silent.

“The rest of my magic; but, that  _ is _ where it gets complicated, isn’t it,” Tendou murmured eventually and half nonsensically. “Magic isn’t a straight line; it’s a circle. Living and nonliving. Free and restrained. It’s empowered by humans--their thoughts, wishes, emotions, strength of mind--just as it empowers the humans that use it. Yes?”

Hinata shrugged. “I have...no idea what you’re talking about.”

Tendou snorted and otherwise ignored him. “Gather enough magic being used for similar purposes--for pride, for passion, for establishing order, or for messing everything up--and the magic starts getting ideas, too. The magic starts watching. As for what I am? I’m a Fate. I’m  _ Chaos _ , the lovely freedom of disorder in its purest form...or--well--I’m the conscious part, at least. The unconscious part--the rest of  _ me,  _ I guess you could say--is what controls things like those Marks.” 

Tendou smiled in amusement, waving his hand along the rails as his hand sailed right through. Like a mirage, like no part of him was solid in the first place, and--for a second--Hinata blinked and there really  _ was  _ nothing there, only an unobstructed view of the sea.

Then, Tendou started talking again and he was  _ there  _ again _ ,  _ more vivid than a human person had a right to be. “Funny thing about consciousness. They can’t be everywhere at once. It has to be tied to  _ something  _ if it wants to hang around. And, boy, does magic always want its tradeoffs.”

“And you’re tied to Cards,” Hinata guessed.

Tendou beamed. “Me and Ushiwaka, yep! For the last eight hundred years or so, good times!”

Hinata frowned. “Then, what was the trade-off?”

“Oh, and that is a fun story.” Tendou tapped his chin. “And also a long one. Sorry, Little Ace, as hilarious as you’ve been, I just don’t think we’re at that level yet. Don’t be hurt, bonds like these take time, you know. Let’s give it….hmmm, maybe another century or two; then, buy me a drink and I’ll tell you the whole story. Maybe bring ‘Toshi along for all the technical tidbits!”

Hinata rolled his eyes, leaning on the railing beside him. “Humans don’t live that long.”

There was a long pause.

“Don’t they?” Tendou sounded genuinely confused before he trailed off. “....oh, no, I suppose you don’t. Pity.”

Hinata slid his gaze over, surprised that Tendou actually was frowning, a tiny pout that seemed weighted in how it dragged his entire body down in a slump.

“How old are you,” Hinata asked.

Tendou shrugged. “Depends how you count it. And, between you and me, I’ve always been pretty shit at math even without the whole immortality throwing off the numbers.”

“Sounds kinda lonely,” Hinata admitted.

“Hmmmm, it’s not too bad. Less lonely than it could be.” Tendou looked out at the ocean, gaze far away. “And infinitely better than what it was.”

Then, he turned and his manic grin was back, slapping Hinata on the arm. “Anywho, I’ll leave you be! It sounds like  _ you’ve  _ got some excuses to think about! Have fun!”

Hinata jerked his head back at him. “Wait, where are you going?”

“Who knows?” Tendou waved him off. “Don’t worry, I’ll make my own fun!”

That was exactly what Hinata was afraid of.

“Please don’t get into more trouble,” Hinata begged.

Tendou smirked, throwing a little wood figure up in the air that Hinata quickly identified as the stolen lion from Kenji’s office. “Me? Trouble? No trust at all, Little Ace!”

He bounced off before Hinata could do more than stare and Hinata groaned as he rested his head against the railing.

He was right. 

He really should look into farming.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“Alright,” Tsukishima said critically. “Let’s review what we know.”

The East Tower’s meeting room was a hurricane of notes and projects, all blending together along the edges where it was practically impossible for anyone to tear apart the order without going through everything at once. Honestly, the layout wasn’t that different from the normal mess of missions--the main difference being that  _ this time  _ all the notes were solely dedicated to  _ one _ mission, the rest of their ongoing cases neatly stacked and shelved on the wall to the side.

Noya, Shimizu, and Asahi all stood in the middle of it--like feudal lords ruling over their own stacks of notes while Tsukishima presided above it. Their expressions were tense, shoulders heavy, and similar to how they’d all been for months, without any of the normal enjoyment they normally brought to their job.

Tsukishima was decidedly ignoring the part that was missing. It wasn’t like Hinata would be gone forever, anyway. He’d be back soon enough; then, they could go back to normal. Surely, Tsukishima could manage everyone though until then.

Asahi started off. “Well….for me, there’s nothing that new since last time, honestly. I’m still trying to track down rumors regarding bloodmagic in Futakuchi. And, really, the only solid lead we have there is some reports it was used in healing in the Masamune Reefs, one of their islands….or, um, a lot of the southern half of Futakuchi was hit by a storm about twenty-two years ago. Masamune Reefs was one of the towns that was completely washed away. We have a report in Cards’ budget of sending relief but the survivors…..well, it sounds like there weren’t many survivors from Masamune Reef to begin with and, if there  _ were,  _ Cards doesn’t have access to the records.”

“Probably because they’re stuck behind Futakuchi’s stupid Iron Wall.” Tsukishima sighed. “Fine, any reason the Masamune Reef had for holding a grudge against Cards?”

Asahi shook his head. “None that I could find; but, Kei, there’s hardly anything about Futakuchi in the first place--let alone, a destroyed town. The rumors I did find said they were mainly pacifists and miracle healers.”

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “Pacifists don’t start wars.” 

No matter what Akiteru thought he was doing, the idiot.

“It might just be a dead end,” Asahi said apologetically.

Tsukishima nodded. “Keep following it; but, keep your ears open for other sources. Noya, Shimizu?”

Noya grinned, a bit feral. “We found the Hawks’ leader!”

Tsukishima’s brows shot up. “Who?  _ How? _ ”

“Because we’re geniuses, duh!” Noya slung his arm around Shimizu, who allowed it with grace. “His name’s Ando Takeo!”

“We  _ think  _ he’s the leader,” Shimizu corrected mildly, giving Noya a decided look while the man just grinned unrepentant. “We don’t have definite confirmation; but, enough whispers to believe he’s  _ likely  _ to be at the top of command.”

“But, that’s not even the weird part,” Noya said excitedly. “Listen, to what we heard last night--”

With the benefit of experience dealing with Noya’s mission reports, Tsukishima held up a hand before he could get verbally run over. He focused on Shimizu instead. “Back up, how’d you find out.”

“We asked around the docks to track down the extra ship crew that brought in Akiteru,” Shimizu explained. “Once we had descriptors, it wasn’t too much to track them a few towns over. Fortunately, they were already in a bar.” She paused. “Drunk men tell a lot of things to a pretty face.”

“And I’m a very pretty face.” Noya winked outrageously, pulling out a small smile and a fond eye roll from Shimizu. “Okay, Kiyoko might’ve helped a bit.”

“Just a little,” Shimizu agreed. “We’re continuing to track them to see who they contact.” She nodded at Asahi. “By the way, the new knockout powder was very effective, it dissolved instantly. I doubt they’ll remember a thing in the morning.”

“If the booze didn’t get them there first.” Noya snorted.

“Really?” Asahi brightened. “You know I used a different base component for the powder in that--”

Tsukishima gave him a look.

“That we can talk about later,” Asahi finished sheepishly and Shimizu blushed lightly

Noya’s look was adoring in his usual  _ aren’t they the cutest thing ever  _ kind of way. Luckily, he moved on before Tsukishima could gag--like he didn’t deal with enough of this when they were all teenagers, he had no idea how Hinata hadn’t caught on yet. 

“Anyway, the weird thing,” Noya waved his hand. “Apparently, no one’s seen the Ando guy in  _ months _ !”

Tsukishima frowned. “He’s gone to ground? That’s not that surprising--especially if he knows we’re looking for him.”

“Even his men haven’t heard from him,” Shimizu said. “It sounds like he completely disappeared. Even most of the Hawks don’t know where he is.”

“The guys in the bar kept complaining about it,” Noya added. 

And that was weird.

“Foul play?” Tsukishima ran through the options. “Could be a rival group or it could mean internal power struggle. We could work with that.”

“No, but that’s where it’s  _ really  _ strange,” Noya said. “No signs of foul play. Dude even left notes telling everyone what they should do next. Seems like Ando  _ planned _ to disappear.”

“Then, where did he go,” Tsukishima asked.

“We’re still looking,” Shimizu said. “Right now, we don’t even have a clear description of what he looks like.”

“Sounds like an asshole.” Noya shrugged. “Guy that thinks he’s the smartest person ever and doesn’t tell anyone anything. Eh, not like you though, Tsuki! You’re the best!” 

Tsukishima glare darkened.

“Anyway,” Noya said quickly, “no one sounds like they know anything right now; but, we’ll definitely find him! Don’t worry!”

Tsukishima sighed. “That’s only one of our problems. The biggest question isn’t why Ando disappeared on the rest of his Hawks; it’s what he’s doing  _ instead _ .”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Lev was drinking; Kuroo empathized. 

“So,” Lev lowered his voice to a hiss, “... _ so _ , Hinata  _ is  _ the Ace of Spades, right? Right?”

“Yes,” Kuroo said. “He’s definitely Spade’s Ace.”

...Kuroo was at least 92% sure that Hinata was actually the Ace of Spades and it wasn’t an elaborate ploy by Tsukishima. Okay, 88% sure.

“But, the Mark! That Tendou guy had the  _ Mark! _ ” Lev shouted. “What if--”

“Hinata’s definitely the ace,” Kuroo repeated.

84% sure.

“The real issue is how Tendou faked the Mark,” Kuroo said. “They must have planned it beforehand, yeah? I did tell him to think of something; but, I didn’t think he’d find something that fast.”

Lev waved his hand in a choppy motion. “But, Tendou is sooooooo creepy! The Ace of Spades is supposed to be creepy, right? Hinata’s not creepy like at all!”

Alright, Kuroo was 82% sure that Hinata was definitely the Ace of Spades--final offer!

Kuroo just rolled his eyes and didn’t show any of that to Lev. “We’ve seen Hinata use his Ace power. He’s the Ace of Spades, okay? Now quit talking about it where people can hear us.”

“Oh...oh, right.” Lev shook his head vigorously and turned back to his drink. “Cool! So, think Kenji’s plan will actually work?”

If there was one thing Kuroo especially appreciated about Lev, it was his ability to let things go on a moment’s thought. Fortunately, Kuroo already had something he needed to ask him.

“I think it’s our best shot.” Kuroo took a sip from his own cup, trying to appear as casual as possible. “So….how was Kenma doing when you left.”

Lev jerked sharply, spilling his drink. “Uh--ah!” His words sped up. “”Fine! Everything’s good! Plus, he’s got Yaku! So, everything’s going to be totally fine!”

Kuroo’s heart sped up. “Lev!”

“It’s  _ fine, _ ” Lev protested. “Really!”

Kuroo narrowed his eyes.

“....He’s just been a little quiet,” Lev admitted. “I think he’s worried. He was asking about the guards schedule last time I left.”

“The guards? Why?” Kuroo frowned. “They’re fine!”

“I know, I know,” Lev flapped his hands, “and, once he sees that, it’ll probably be fine! He probably was just worried about….you know, whether he was safe!”

“Does he think he’s not safe,” Kuroo demanded, his gut sinking to his feet. “Does he think the Hawks are targeting him? Did he say he wasn’t safe?”

“He doesn’t say  _ anything! _ ” Lev shouted. “That’s the problem! He hasn’t said practically anything for months! Like less than usual! Even Yaku can’t figure out what he wants and Yaku knows  _ everything _ ! It’s terrifying!”

“Kenma’s just shy,” Kuroo argued hotly.

“Since when,” Lev protested. “Remember last fall when I nearly blew up the stables, I thought he was going to  _ murder  _ me! Kenma’s never shy! Not around us!” He slumped. “But, now, it’s like I can’t tell anything. I hate it.”

Kuroo took a breath, feeling all at once like his chest was too big and empty while his skin was suddenly too tight. He needed to  _ move _ .

“Maybe…,” Kuroo ran a hand through his hair, “maybe, we should just go back.”

Lev blinked up at him. “What?”

“We can figure something out,” Kuroo was speaking fast now, thinking even quicker until his thoughts tumbled and tripped over one another. “Your magic can get us back to Diamonds quick, yeah? Like you got here. We can do that. Hinata can handle everything here. He’s got King Yudai and Kenji and….He doesn’t need us. Not if Kenma does. We can--”

“What are you talking about?” Lev grabbed his arm. “We can’t  _ leave,  _ not yet!”

“We can,” Kuroo kind of thought he might be breaking apart. “Kenma needs us. He’s our King, he needs us to look out for him and--”

“Kenma needs us  _ here _ ! He ordered us here.” Lev shook him, looking baffled. “Kuroo, _ calm down _ ! Snap out of it. You’re freaking me out.”

Kuroo’s lungs hurt and his skin felt clammy. “But--”

“But nothing. It’s  _ Kenma _ ,” Lev said. “I just said he was being quiet. He’s still  _ Kenma _ .” Lev waved a hand in a way that meant everything. “Kenma always figures out what to do, don’t worry.”

Kuroo didn’t say what he was thinking.

Because it  _ was  _ Kenma they were talking about--strong, beautiful, amazing, smart Kenma.

….and Kuroo had never been away from him for more than a week.

It was almost three months now.

“He told us to trust him,” Lev said, quiet but firm. He leaned back and crossed his arms. “So, I’m not leaving and neither are you. He’s our King, Kuroo, we  _ have _ to trust him. He deserves it.”

Yeah, he did deserve it. Then, why did Kuroo feel like everything around him was already unraveling.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kenma thought there was a certain peace found in dark palace halls in the middle of the night. It was the freedom of being alone to think in absolute stillness.

….only tonight, he wasn’t really alone at all.

He was waiting.

A cloaked figure stood in the shadows, hidden entirely unless one knew what to expect.

Kenma looked to his guest, taking note of the rolled parchment in one hand and the familiar dagger in the other.

“Hello,” the King of Diamonds said softly, “I’ve been waiting for you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy (belated) Holidays, guys! As always, ya'll are awesome and I appreciate all of your support :)
> 
> Next Post Date: Jan.16-17  
> Update: Sorry, guys, running a few days late, I'm expecting to post Wed-Thurs. 
> 
> Always feel free to find me on Tumblr: greycappedjester.tumblr.com


	15. Chapter 15

_ 15 Years Prior _

_ Tsukishima was absolutely not upset. _

_ He just privately thought that everyone around him were idiots--his irritating and incredibly unwanted roommate the biggest of all. _

_ Which he was going to make sure to tell Hinata the moment he was allowed to see him. In fact, the only possible reason he could be feeling just a little bit anxious was that it had been nearly  _ two whole nights  _ since he’d last seen Hinata and that long without expressing Tsukishima’s true thoughts on the sheer depth of Hinata’s varied shortcomings would cause anyone to feel a little frustrated. _

_ Tsukishima knew this. He’d read all about in the various psychology texts Takeda and Ukai kept sending his way to build him up as a spymaster. Basic point: people needed to express their emotions. And Tsukishima currently had a lot of angry emotions to talk about--loudly and possibly with a thrown book scattered in there. _

_ But, currently, he wasn’t doing any of that.  _

_ Instead, he was waiting outside the East Tower’s makeshift infirmary with his hands clenched tight enough he could almost see the bones. _

_ “Kei,” a voice called gently. _

_ Tsukishima jerked his head up. “How is he?” _

_ “He’ll be alright.” Takeda knelt down across from him. “Hinata is going to be just fine.” _

_ Tsukishima took a deep breath and Takeda leaned forward, lifting a hand to softly card through Tsukishima’s hair just like he used to do when Tsukishima was very young before he declared he was too old for useless gestures. Tsukishima decided to allow it this time. For Takeda--his guardian had probably had a long couple of nights, too. And, if right now, the familiar hands soothing cooling lines along his scalp is what made Takeda feel better...well, Tsukishima supposed he’d suffer through it for a little while. _

_ Then, the verb tense registered. _

_ “Will be?” Tsukishima pressed. “As in isn’t currently?” _

_ Takeda sighed, shifting to sit next to him. “Suga’s still keeping a close watch on him. The fever only started going down a couple of hours ago; but, there’s always a chance it will resurge and we’ll need a Mage close by.” His guardian tried to give him a comforting smile. “Don’t worry, Kei, the only thing we can do now is make sure he’s resting and staying hydrated.” _

_ Tsukishima’s expression firmed. “What happened?”  _

_ Because that was what Tsukishima wanted to know the most. Idiots weren’t supposed to get sick, everyone knew that. And, besides that, Hinata was an Ace! Who ever heard of an Ace dying from something as simple as the common cold?  _

_ That was ridiculous. Impossible. Tsukishima had personally seen Hinata stay up all night, sitting by the window in winter, and not even get a sore throat while Tsukishima had a stuffy nose all week. _

_ Unbidden, he saw the image of Hinata three days ago, falling in training and not getting up--no matter how much Tsukishima prodded him and shook him and beg-- _

_ “Hinata doesn’t just get sick,” Tsukishima insisted. “Someone must have done something. An attack or…” _

_ “Tsukishima,” Takeda shook his head, hands going back to his lap. “It was just bad luck. You know Ukai has been working with all of you to build up tolerance against common poisons. Apparently, Hinata reacted to one of them worse than expected. He hasn’t been sleeping well the last few days. Lack of sleep weakens the immune system. With that, it’s no wonder his body couldn’t fight it as well as we’re used to.” _

_ Tsukishima breathed in again and thought back. _

_...and maybe Hinata hadn’t been sleeping well. He woke up Tsukishima a week ago, complaining about a sore stomach. Tsukisima told him to deal with it quietly. _

_ But that wasn’t enough to get someone sick. Not someone like Hinata. And if it was...If everything was as obvious as Takeda claimed, then why didn’t any of them see it coming. Why didn’t they stop it? Fates, why didn’t Hinata notice if it was his own dumb body they were talking about? _

_ Why didn’t Tsukishima when he was right across the room? _

_ “I want to see him,” Tsukishima declared. _

_ “Kei….,” Takeda sighed. “He’s probably sleeping. I doubt he’ll be up for any sort of company until at least tomorrow at the earliest.” _

_ Tsukishima glared.  _

_ As if Hinata ever wasn’t interested in “company”. Besides Tsukishima wasn’t company, he was his roommate, the future Jack with Hinata’s Ace, the spymaster and the spy. _

_ He should always be allowed to see Hinata. Any idea to the contrary was laughable. _

_ But, Tsukishima didn’t say any of that because knowing Takeda, it wouldn’t work. Instead, he looked down, knuckles clenching again to try to think of what would Takeda need to hear to get Tsukishima past that stupid door just so he could make sure Hinata hadn’t done anything ridiculous like stop breathing or... _

_ Whatever, just so Tsukishima could check and make sure. _

_ He was still trying to think of what possible argument he could make when Takeda’s hand landed on his shoulder. _

_ “There’s no need to look like that, Tsukishima,” Takeda gently interrupted his thoughts. “Hinata’s going to be okay.” _

_ Tsukishima had no idea what face he was supposed to be making; but, whatever it was it seemed to be working more than any words Tsukishima could come up with so instead of stopping, he looked up at Takeda full force. _

_ “I want to see him,” Tsukishima tried again. _

_ Takeda met his eyes, holding the stare as if trying to see past them into Tsukishima’s thoughts. Eventually, he looked down. “Alright, Kei, but only if you’re quiet and promise not to argue if Suga tells you to leave. Hinata needs the rest.” _

_ Tsukishima nodded. _

_ Takeda stood, leading him to the door and carefully creaked it open. “Suga? Is it alright for one more visitor?” _

_ Through the small crack of lighting, Tsukishima saw the Queen look up and soften when he laid eyes on Tsukishima. _

_ “It’s fine.” Suga made his way to the door. He gave Tsukishima a small smile. “Maybe you can help our patient, too. He’s still having some trouble getting to sleep.” _

_ Tsukishima’s frown darkened. _

_ Idiot. _

_ “I’ll handle it,” Tsukishima promised, brushing his way into the dark room, lit only by a candle. _

_ His feet stopped without a conscious order when his eyes adjusted and he finally got a look at Hinata. _

_ Because Hinata didn’t look better. He looked too pale with his chest too flushed and struggling with every breath he took. But, he was there. The pit in his stomach that Tsukishima had felt for the past three days started to shrink back. _

_ And, then, Hinata saw him and he grinned, the exact wide over the top expression that it always was and Tsukishima glared on reflex.  _

_ “Tsuki!” Hinata rasped back excitedly. “You’re here! I haven’t seen you all week!” _

_ Tsukishima took one note of the slight glaze behind Hinata’s eyes and remembered that a fever going down wasn’t the same as a fever being gone. _

_ “It’s only been a few days,” Tsukishima grumbled, taking the seat beside the bed. “Don’t be dramatic.” _

_ “Oh?” The blink that Hinata gave was long and confused. “Has it? It felt longer than that.” _

_ It had. But, Tsukishima wasn’t going to admit that. _

_ “Why are you still awake,” he accused. “Takeda told you to get some sleep. What kind of Ace are you if you can’t even go to sleep so you can beat a stupid cold?” _

_ Hinata huffed, sinking back down into the blankets obstinately. “I was waiting for you. Duh.” _

_ Tsukishima’s brow knit together. “What?” _

_ “You looked scared,” Hinata explained slowly, like Tsukishima was the dumb one rather than Hinata who was still clearly suffering from mild delirium if the hazy sense to his words was anything to go by. “When I fell, you looked really, really scared. So, I had to make sure you were okay before I could sleep. That’s the Ace’s job.” _

_ Tsukishima stared at him. _

_ Hinata’s eyelids kept sinking before he jerked them back up to stare back. _

_ Tsukishima shook his head. “Just go to sleep, idiot. I’m right here.” _

_ Hinata smiled, finally letting his eyes close shut. “Good.” _

_ Yes, Tsukishima reconfirmed, everyone around him seemed to be missing something vital. Because clearly Hinata couldn’t be trusted to look out for himself all on his own.  _

_ That’s why Tsukishima would stay here. _

_ Just to make sure. _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Ask anyone in the kingdom and most likely the adjoining ones as well and it could be reasonably agreed that Queen Suga of Spades was the most patient, understanding, gentle ruler in the entirety of Cards.

“Please,” Suga moaned, head in his hands. “Kei, I’m begging you! Do  _ not  _ go over it again!  _ Leave! _ ”

Tsukishima did not leave.

“Suga,” Tsukishima looked annoyed, “I need to run through the possibilities.”

Suga gave him a look. “And you can’t do it quietly?”

“I think through problems better out loud.” Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “I always have. You know this.”

That was unfortunately true; but, until now, Suga had never been the one on the receiving end of Tsukishima’s borderline obsessive run through of possible strategies.

Suga made a mental note to earmark an incredibly generous portion of the research budget for Takeda in the next annual budget review. For Hinata...Suga suppressed a shudder. By the time Hinata got back, Suga might owe him an entire new palace wing.

“--which leads me to think that the leader of the Hawks is not secluding himself based on some kind of bizarre defense strategy. If so, he’d need more guards. Unless he’s planning it as a diversion tactic in which case--” Tsukishima cut off, frowning at Suga, “you’re not even listening, are you?”

“No,” Suga replied honestly. “Though, in my defense, I  _ did  _ listen to your report yesterday and the first time you updated me on all of these this morning. And--just like then--I still have no new insight to tell you.”

Tsukishima tsked, eyes flickering to Suga then back away like he kept expecting him to be someone else and then was irritated all over again when he found Suga wasn’t who he was looking for.

Suga attempted a new tactic. “Tsukishima, do you know how I’ve managed to be Queen so long? Through over a century of political messes, all without going insane?”

Tsukishima sighed. “Patience.”

“Ha, no.” Suga snorted. “Delegation and a very comfortable pillow to scream into. But, since it’s you, I suppose we’ll stick with delegation.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m saying I’m not the person you want to talk to,” Suga said gently.

Tsukishima glared. “I know that.” He closed his eyes and let the breath go. “But, I’ve run out of other options. Tadashi is good with the people; but, doesn’t apply it naturally to espionage. Shimizu prefers direction over discussion. Noya’s too prone to dramatics. Asahi won’t disagree with me unless he has to. Yachi has experience talking though individual missions; but, doesn’t have the background for the macro political implications. That’s everyone. I don’t have anyone else.”

“You do,” Suga hummed. “In fact, I think there’s someone you should talk to. Actually, I think it would help both of you.”

“Who,” Tsukishima asked.

Suga told him.

Tsukishima stared at him. “You’re kidding?”

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

There was a soft but certain knock on Kenji’s office door.

Kenji recognized it by tone alone. “I know I told you that you don’t have to knock.”

Aone opened the door. “Basic privacy.”

“For  _ what _ ?” Kenji complained. “You’re my First Mate. Fates, we were literally cabin boys together--as  _ teenagers _ . If you wanted to kill me from sheer embarrassment, you already have the material. You’re probably already thinking of one, aren’t you?”

Aone didn’t smile so much as give the outward appearance of amusement.

“Shut up,” Kenji grumbled, turning back to the mess of black ink he was calling notes. “What do you want.”

“Message.” Aone held up a folded letter. “From Sasaya.”

Kenji raised a brow even as he grabbed the paper. “Thought he was still being killed with guard duty?” He opened it and read it before laughing. “Oh, that idiot, I don’t know if this is insane or genius.”

Aone waited.

“He’s joining us,” Kenji grinned. “Apparently, Kamasaki let slip we were planning something so Sasaya purposely set up a fake injury in training to get him a week’s rest.” The grin dropped fractionally. “He said it wouldn’t be suspicious.”

Aone frowned. 

It was never good when an injury that could take out a guard for a week  _ wasn’t  _ seen as unusual. 

Kenji looked back down to his note. “I honestly don’t know what Hotaka’s thinking or that insane attack dog of Guard Captain. Uncle Hotaka might not have been a  _ great  _ navy captain back when he served; but, he should at least know enough to take care of his men.” He tapped his finger against the desk. “This, working with Hyakuzawa’s old king, the attack on Cards, it’s pure blood lust. Only an idiot would think he’s not planning for war. I don’t understand why…. _ especially  _ after he’s spent the last decade building up the Iron Wall. It’s almost like…,” Kenji paused, “it’s almost like he spent all this time just getting ready and now’s the trigger.” He shook his head. “Right now, Hotaka’s got the bastards in the navy that got into it for the power trip and the bloodthirsty that are just looking for a fight. But, what about everyone else? He was a captain, he should know better. No one wins a war without their men behind them.”

“There’s no leader without loyalty,” Aone said.

“Exactly.” Kenji narrowed his eyes. “So, what am I missing?”

Aone nodded down at the ink soaked paper. “A speech.”

All at once, Kenji groaned, sinking his head onto the paper. “A  _ speech _ ! Fates, Aone, Mai said she only barely got the rest of the ships to meet. How the fuck am I going to convince them to fight the entire navy.” He poked at the ink well. “What if you did the speech for me?”

Aone blinked. “Not my strength.”

“What’s this? Not feeling very verbose?” Kenji laughed at the look Aone sent him. “Fine, alright, I see how it is. What if I get Diamond’s Ace to do it? Or better yet, that creepy Ace of Spades guy? He can just terrify them into order?”

Aone shifted, coughing slightly and--if Kenji didn’t know better--he’d almost say it looked embarrassed.

Kenji’s grin widened. “What is it?”

“You found Spade’s Ace.”

“Yeah? It wasn’t hard.”

Aone was looking pointedly behind Kenji instead. “I thought Hinata was the Ace.”

Kenji stared at him before he started to laugh. “Seriously?  _ Hinata _ ?! The guy that’s even shorter than Sakunami and spent the first week here throwing up in a bucket?”

Aone didn’t deign him with a response, a hint of red creeping up his cheeks.

“It’s okay, Aone.” Kenji winked, already deciding to bring this up forever. “You’re already right like, hmmm, maybe 99.9 percent of the time. You can be wrong once.”

Aone gave a small huff before decidedly changing the subject. “It should be you.”

“What does?” Kenji was still amused. “Oh, am I the Ace of Spades now? How indecisive.”

Aone’s tone was serious. “To convince the pirates to fight. It should be your words.”

Kenji hummed. “Why’s that? The pirates won’t listen just to a king. So, don’t even try that angle.”

“But, they will listen to  _ you _ ,” Aone finished. 

Kenji stared at him. “Only if I find the right words. And even then, it’ll still be nearly impossible.”

Aone looked back, equanimous.

“...well, then, I better think of something to say,” Kenji said.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“Hey.” Kuroo sat down next to Hinata.

“Hey,” Hinata frowned down at his book, the binding worn and frayed by now, water damage along the edges, soot marks on the cover, and--most obviously--a stab mark straight in the middle where a sword had eviscerated it. “Be honest, do you think it’s still salvageable?”

“No,” Kuroo said bluntly.

Hinata sighed. “Yeah, I think I’ll have to fix up the binding before I give it to Kageyama.”

“The binding’s  _ not _ the problem.”

“I’ll fix up the binding,” Hinata insisted.

“The whole thing’s a wreck.”

_ “Binding. _ ”

Kuroo rolled his eyes. “So, are we going to talk about it?”

“About what,” Hinata muttered and he looked so intently focused on the stupid book, Kuroo honestly couldn’t tell if he was bluffing or not.

“Oh, you know,” Kuroo said faux casual, “just about the guy that  _ copied your Mark _ ! You know, your Mark-- _ our _ Mark--the one that’s supposed to be impossible to copy.”

Hinata finally glanced up, wide eyes and nose scrunched up, looking all around baffled. “You told me to come up with something.”

Kuroo glared.

“It worked, didn’t it,” Hinata continued. “Kenji has no idea.”

“Yes,” Kuroo said flatly, “good job. You definitely freaked the fuck out of Lev. However, I’m much more concerned with how it worked?”

“How?” Hinata shrugged, “just a bit of fake magic, wouldn’t hold up long or under inspection. You can ask Tendou. I bet it’s already worn off by now.” His expression twitched only slightly. “It’s  _ definitely  _ worn off by now. I’ll make sure of it.”

And, then, Hinata smiled widely, back to his look of harmless innocence.

Kuroo narrowed his eyes.

Alright, real talk: from the first moment Kuroo met Hinata--back before he knew him as a fellow Ace and more as a thirteen year old mess of flailing limbs and a bright smile--he’d always thought that Hinata was a strange guy. And, no, it wasn’t just the slight tinge of bitterness that somehow a random Spades servant was suddenly bringing out those fond smiles from Kenma that Kuroo had previously thought only  _ he  _ could do so easily.

No, Hinata was  _ different  _ in a way that was impossible to place a finger on and, for a chessmaster like Kuroo who prided himself on reading his opponents, that was ridiculously frustrating. There was always something about Hinata’s smiles that made him feel like he was missing part of it--that there was something else, another story hidden beneath everything. It was the way that Hinata  _ never  _ seemed to tense around Kuroo--always seemed loose and casual in a way normal servants weren’t, at least at first--which meant Kuroo couldn’t even use his Ace’s power to get a better read on him. Everyone tensed occasionally, every one one day had to go on defensive. That Hinata never did either made him the most laid back person in the world or it meant he was doing it intentionally. And either was  _ weird. _

None of the weirdness meant he didn’t like Hinata. Fates, once he got over the little tug of jealousy, Kuroo would seriously consider bribing Suga to let Diamonds take Hinata if only because the little guy could actually get Kenma to stop working every now and then. It wasn’t even that the weirdness was a major thing, more a feeling, an itch under his skin that sometimes Kuroo wondered if it was leftover bitterness or if he was imagining himself since no one else seemed to see it. 

He’d asked Kenma what he thought once and only got the notably unhelpful response of, _ I think Shouyou is a very genuine person...even when he shouldn’t be. _

So, yeah, thanks for that.

Then, a few months ago, he found out about the Ace of Spades thing and it felt like it all made sense. Ah, that was it: Hinata was hiding his secret. He had to be. 

Now, sitting here on a ship miles away from home, Kuroo was less sure. Because the thing of it was Hinata didn’t really hide. Sure, he’d dodge out of fights and fake a lack of experience when needed; but, if anything, Hinata was always himself. He just let other people assume around him. 

For the first time, Kuroo thought he finally understood what Kenma meant. 

As the kingdom’s top spy, Hinata seemed remarkably uninterested in being anything other than himself. It was everyone else that wasn't watching clearly enough. 

Annoying, then, that Kuroo felt like he still didn’t have the full picture. He wondered if anyone did.

He sighed. “I miss Kenma.”

“Yeah,” Hinata agreed quietly. “Me, too. All of them.”

“Kenma’s a lot smarter about this stuff than me,” Kuroo said because it was true. “Hey, just tell me this, you actually are the Ace of Spades, right?”

Hinata gave him such a flat look that Kuroo had to laugh.

“Okay, great,” Kuroo shook his head, “every other theory I had was way too confusing. What a mess.”

Hinata snorted. “Blame Tendou.”

“That what you’ve been doing?”

“Mostly.”

“Good strategy,” Kuroo admitted.

Hinata grinned. “I think so.”

“So….,” Kuroo leaned in on the table, letting his voice drop quieter, “there’s magic enough to fake a Mark even if it’s only surface level. Alright, I can accept that.” He met Hinata’s eyes in a challenge. “Any other secrets you and Tsukishima are keeping quiet about--even from us Suits.”

The air around them went cold and still.

Hinata met Kuroo’s eyes, too. “What a dangerous question to ask,  _ Ace of Diamonds _ ?”

The title held weight, reminding Kuroo that this wasn’t exactly a conversation between friends anymore but between Aces.

Hinata’s grin didn’t falter a single inch. 

Kuroo swallowed. “Is it?”

“Yes,” Hinata agreed, not exactly pleasantly. 

“What kind of secrets,” Kuroo had to ask.

Hinata shrugged. “There’s lots of kinds of secrets and there’s always things to worry about. What’s more important is trusting they’ll get handled. And, in that case, there’s nothing to worry about if you trust us?”

“‘Suppose I will,” Kuroo let it go. “We all have to trust each other--especially right now.”

“The Card Kingdoms Stand United,” Hinata agreed cheerfully and the mood lifted the same time Hinata brought his book up for inspection. “Anyway, what do you know about book binding?”

Kuroo snorted.

Yeah, Hinata was definitely still weird. But, Kuroo was really glad he was on their side.

He thought the alternative would be even more terrifying.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Tsukishima couldn’t believe he was actually doing this.

The glare Tsukishima got back, standing in the doorway, told him that Kageyama couldn’t believe he was doing this either.

Ugh, when one of them inevitably ended up murdering the other, Tsukishima was officially holding Suga accountable as an accomplice.

“What,” Kageyama stated.

“It’s come to my attention--,” Tsukishima gritted his teeth, “that I may require...a very minimal level of assistance. Though, please be aware I wouldn’t even be here if it wasn’t the literal fate of Spades hanging in the balance.”

Kageyama blinked. “You need my help?”

“I need  _ some  _ help,” Tsukishima corrected stiffly, “Suga suggested the help could conceivably be attributed to you. I’m less convinced.”

Kageyama rolled his eyes. “How’s that different than needing  _ my help _ ?”

“If you don’t get it, I’m not bothering to debate semantics with you,” Tsukishima said, perching in the one open chair in the mess Kageyama called a room. He scrunched up his nose, gesturing to the piles of books scattered around. “Honestly, how do you live like this? We do have a library for a reason you know.”

Kageyama shrugged. “I need them in order.”

“What order?”

“Mine.” Kageyama narrowed his eyes. “What do you need my help with?”

Tsukishima considered. “I think it would be easier if you quit calling it that.”

“What do you need  _ My. Help.  _ with,” Kageyama repeated because their King, as Tsukishima had long held from being of a similar disposition, was fundamentally an asshole. He just hid it better under blundering social ineptitude while Tsukishima was up front about it.

Tsukishima securely locked away his pride and got on with it so he could get this over with faster. “I need a sounding board and my usual one has absconded for a life of piracy.” 

“Oh.” Kageyama’s face went through a complicated series of expressions before finally landing on determination. “Okay, I’ll do what I can.”

Tsukishima raised a brow. “We found who the leader of the Hawks is--Ando Takeo. But unfortunately, it seems like the man himself has gone into hiding.”

“Suga told me,” Kageyama confirmed.

“The thing I can’t figure out is why,” Tsukishima continued. “By a certain reasoning, it  _ could  _ be a good sign. His ultimate plan to use Kuroo to kill a Suit member failed so now he’s afraid we’re onto him and is hiding away to lick his wounds and regroup. That’s the best option. It means we have time. Possibly time even to get Hinata back and get a better handle on how to counter Akiteru’s bloodmagic.”

“That sounds good,” Kageyama agreed. “Why don’t you think that’s it?”

Tsukishima sighed. “Because it doesn’t  _ feel  _ right.”

“That’s all,” Kageyama pressed.

“It’s too easy,” Tsukishima said. “Things like this are never that easy.”

Kageyama frowned. “Doesn’t seem like things are that easy. Hinata nearly died and we still have a secret organization running around trying to kill us. What part of that is too easy?”

“Because it could still be worse.” Tsukishima huffed. “I told you, it's just a feeling. Something’s missing, not everything can be tied up that neatly.”

“A feeling’s not much.”

“I know,” Tsukisima admitted reluctantly.

“What if you’re wrong?”

“I’m usually not.”

“But you could be,” Kageyama shrugged. “No offense, but you normally have more to go on then a feeling. Even you know that.”

“And that’s why I’m here,” Tsukishima said. “Just because it’s a theory I can’t prove wrong doesn’t mean it’s right. There's something else going on here.”

“What would Hinata say then,” Kageyama asked.

“Something ridiculous,” Tsukishima waved a hand, “Who knows?”

“You probably,” Kageyama said.

Tsukishima looked up. “What?”

Kageyama shifted, looking distinctly uncomfortable with what he was about to say next. “Well...you know Hinata better than anyone, right? Better than Suga...probably better than me in a lot of ways. So, what do you think he’d say?”

Tsukishima stared, the question ringing in his ears.

Kageyama waited.

“I don’t know,” Tsukishima confessed and the words felt weighted. “To be honest, I’ve been trying to figure that out for weeks and I have absolutely no idea what Hinata would say.” He glanced down. “It’s fairly irritating, actually. I’ve been the kingdom’s spymaster for a decade--I’m supposed to know how people work. And, for some reason, I can’t think of a single thing Hinata would complain about. How annoying.”

Kageyama’s mouth quirked, almost a smile. “He’s surprising.”

“He’s frustrating is what he is,” Tsukishima rolled his eyes. “That’s the real problem, only a lunatic would come up with half the things he does. Utterly incomprehensible, incredibly aggravating.”

Tsukishima knew he didn’t miss Kageyama’s smile that time. “Yeah, that, too. Hinata’s kind of annoying like that.”

“I don’t think you should be agreeing with me on that, my King,” Tsukshima remarked. “I mean I’m right, obviously; but, I thought all those honest assessments got wiped away when the heart eyes and terrible pinning started.”

Kageyama rolled his eyes. “I mean…,” his cheeks went red before looking down and pretending they weren’t, “I mean, yeah, I’m in love with him. I kind of can’t imagine not being.”

“But,” Tsukishima said. 

Kageyama snorted. “But he also spent three years being literally the most clumsy servant in the world. Do you know how many books he’s knocked over?  _ On purpose.  _ I nearly strangled him when I found out he was just doing it for the stupid cover. ” A snort, only kinda fond. “Plus, he uses the weirdest shit as bookmarks. Twice, he used an apple stem. Apples aren’t even in season. Where the fuck does he get them all? And he wakes me up before dawn like daily. Which is the worst.” 

Tsukishima laughed. “He’s always done that.”

“Yeah?” Kageyama looked curious, then, like he was filing the information away for later. He rubbed the back of his neck. “But, yeah, I miss him, too. A lot.” He sighed. “When we first got back, I kept waking up and expecting him to be here. Now, I don’t and I think that might be worse.”

Tsukishima stayed quiet for a long moment. He didn’t look up when he spoke next. “I think...I think I’m still at the looking for him stage. I don’t know when I’ll stop.”

Tsukishima truthfully didn’t know where he’d be if he stopped expecting Hinata to be there next to him. He didn’t really want to know. It sounded quiet. Empty. Tsukishima didn’t much think he’d like the person he’d have to be then.

There was something that Tsukishima had been considering, about himself more than anything. And about memories and apologies and the uselessness of both of them. 

When it came down to it, Tsukishima thought it might be easier to realize something needed to change than figure out what that something actually was and actually get around to changing it. 

Unfortunately, Tsukishima had recently realized he was utter shit at figuring out things alone--so like many things, it would have to wait.

When he glanced up, Kageyama was watching him.

“What,” Tsukishima said.

Kageyama rubbed the back of his neck. “Alright, this might be an asshole thing to say; but, I honestly didn’t expect this to affect you this much.”

Tsukishima raised a brow. 

“I mean,” Kageyama continued, “even back when it first happened and we thought...it’s not like I thought you wouldn’t care or something. But, I didn’t...I didn’t expect this.”

Tsukishima huffs out something close to a laugh. “You’re right that  _ is _ an asshole to say. It’s a good thing you leave the diplomacy to Suga.”

Kageyama glared. 

Tsukishima measured the next words carefully.

“...I didn’t either,” he admitted. “Not  _ this  _ much at least.” He sighed, hand going to the back of his neck. “It’s stupid, I know he’s alright. Realistically, he’s been far less alright than he is now. There’s no reason I should be this...whatever.” 

Kageyama shrugs. “Just because he’s alright, doesn’t mean I don’t miss him.”

“Well, let’s not get sentimental,” Tsukishima grumbled at least for appearance sake. “If you start suggesting group poetry, I’m leaving.”

Kageyama didn’t even bother glaring this time. “Suga told me you grew up together.”

“Yes,” Tsukishima confirmed.

“Hinata’s mentioned it a few times; but,” Kageyama frowned, “actually, Hinata doesn’t really talk about himself much at all.”

“Habit,” Tsukishima admitted, “a spy’s better when they get other people to talk more than the other way around. Plus, our childhood was mainly spent training or arguing, neither of which are particularly stories we wanted to get around to others.”

“What was it like,” Kageyama asked. “Growing up like that?”

Tsukishima thought about it, a thousand stories and days flashing in the back of his mind, a few bad mixed in among the good. There was one common theme.

“Rarely boring,” Tsukishima settled on. He shook his head. “Who knows, my King, maybe one day if you buy me some particularly good booze, I’ll actually tell you about it. Only the embarrassing stories of Hinata, of course.”

Kageyama grinned. “For when he gets back.”

“For then,” Tsukishima promised.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

“KOGANEGAWA, PULL IN THE SAILS!” Kenji shouted. “AS TIGHT AS THEY’LL GO! FUKIAGE, MAKE SURE THE PORTS ARE CLOSED! ONAGAWA, TIGHTER--TO THE EAST, UNLESS YOU WANT US TO SCRAPE OUT ON THE STARBOARD SIDE!”

Hinata winced. “Couldn’t this be a little bit easier?’

Kenji gave a manic grin. “What fun would that be?”

Fog clung thickly as the cliffs towered above them in warning, the ship barely threading through them in a way that was more akin to dancing than any sailing Hinata had ever seen.

Lev tilted his head at him. “You okay?”

Hinata watched from between his fingers. “Y-yeah, why?”

“Don’t worry!” Lev slapped him on the back. “Even if we sink, I can probably make a water bubble in time.”

Hinata privately thought that sinking to the ocean floor in a bubble made entirely of water, magic, and air was the worst sort of torture he could possibly imagine; but, he kept that thought to himself.

At the very least, a glance at Tendou showed that--for once--the Fate just looked bored with the approaching terror. 

“So primitive.” Tendou tsked, only to Hinata. “I don’t know why they don’t just go over the cliffs. A single Mage should be able to lift a ship just fine...well,  _ reasonably  _ fine. Maybe a few drops for fun.”

The cliffs were at least a couple hundred feet high.

And abruptly Hinata started to feel a lot better about the whole sailing thing.

He looked up at Tendou. “Thanks.”

“For what?” Tendou blinked. 

Luckily, whatever excuse Hinata was going to say was cut off by the ship suddenly jerking to a halt, running down on a sandbar, hidden between dark waves. 

“Why did we stop,” Kuroo asked.

Kenji just smirked. “Because we’re here.”

“Seriously, this place?”

Then, Hinata saw it--a tunnel was tucked low and nearly cut off by the jutting cliffs enough that only someone who knew it was there would ever be able to find it.

“Pirates are a paranoid lot,” Kenji remarked before turning to Sakunami. “Drop the anchors and get the rowboats. We’re rowing from here.”

“Rowing?” Tendou made a face.

“Yeah.” Kenji thrust an oar at him. “And best be quick about it, too.” 

Tendou pouted. “What’s the rush?”

Kenji pointed and Hinata looked out at the ocean as the mist just started to clear out around the bottom of the gorge. 

One by one, a mast stuck out from the gloom followed by sails until…. 

Lev sucked in a breath and Hinata couldn’t even blame him

Dozens upon dozens of ships lined against the rocks, dark shapes sticking out of the ocean like tombstones and sinking back into the fog with the lightest brush of wind. There could have carried hundreds, maybe a thousand, hidden deep in the water.

“Because,” Kenji’s eyes took in all of them, “we’re late.”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys, as always thank you so, so much for your support and hope you enjoyed!
> 
> I've got two things to add. First, sorry about the week delay--first week back to school hit harder than expected. Second, full confession, this chapter was originally arranged differently before I realized it made a lot more sense to cut it in half. So with that, this chapter is much more slower and character focused while the next one gets down into the plot specifics. I'm not sure I'm crazy about how the split ended up but, oh well, just be aware that the next chapters are going to get way more into the plot and action as things start to wrap up!
> 
> Next Post Date: Feb. 13-14 (giving myself an extra week to catch up)
> 
> Always feel free to find me on tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/
> 
> Running a bit behind on comments but last capter's should be replied to tonight.


	16. Chapter 16

_ 2 Years Prior _

_ The storm was still rattling along the stone outside, echoing off the cave walls and sweeping in wind. _

_ The ship was safe, though, waiting out the storm in a small cove off a minuscule piece of land barely jutting out of the ocean--an islet more than a full fledged island _

_ Much better than open exposure, where weather like this would turn it deadly. _

_ Aone sat next to him, handing him a bowl of stew that Kenji took gladly. _

_ “So,” Kenji asked, “he going to make it?” _

_ Aone nodded. “Obara’s confident.” _

_ “Thought so,” Kenji said “Seems like a fighter. Had to be to make it  _ weeks  _ after being marooned here. Fates, it’s practically a miracle; did you see the land out there? More shrubs than food and half of it looked poisonous. Guy’s either insanely lucky or the best forager I’ve ever seen.” _

_ Aone nodded once more _

_ Kenji grinned. “ _ Last Resort  _ needs lucky guys.” _

_ “Keeping him,” Aone asked. _

_ “Yeah,” Kenji agreed. “Well, his choice--once we see if Obara can get him over the last of the fever. But, yeah, I was thinking we could use a cabin boy. Someone we could train up from the start.” _

_ Aone smiled--or at least, his understated version of one. _

_ “Captain,” Sakunami shouted. “New guy’s awake!” _

_ Kenji stood up and stretched. “Is he lucid?” _

_ “Um….I’m not really sure?” _

_ “Well, sounds interesting,” Kenji continued on, handing off his empty bowl. “Might as well start the introductions.” _

_ Sakunami grinned, shooting him a salute. _

_ How come, of all his crew, Sakunami was the only one who actually made his salute seem sincere? _

_ Kenji winked, patting his shoulder. “Don’t tell the others, Sakunami, you’re my favorite.” _

_ “Aone’s your favorite.” _

_ “You’re my second favorite.” _

_ “You told Onagawa that yesterday when he brought you extra bread.” _

_ “Sakunami,” Kenji flicked him in the head instead, “take the compliment.” _

_ “Yes, Captain!”  _

_ Nevermind, none of his crew gave him proper respect. Maybe there was still hope for the new guy. _

_ Kenji knocked on Obara’s door. “He awake?” _

_ Obara opened it, carrying out his usual medic kit. “He’s recovering. Talk to him if you want.” Obara squinted. “He’s an odd one.” _

_ “Great, then he’ll fit in fine,” Kenji said, stepping in the room. _

_ For the first time, he got a full look as the younger gangly man. He was taller than Aone, feet hanging comically off the end of the shorter bed. His hair stuck up in half a dozen different directions and was a weird mix of sun-bleached and darker as if it had been dyed once before giving up. Strangest of al, the kid grinned as soon as he saw him. _

_ “Hey!” The guy almost shouted, way too loud for someone just getting over prolonged fever and near starvation. “Boy, am I glad you guys stopped by! I thought no one was ever going to find me!” _

_ “I bet.” Kenji sat back in the chair, nodding at the pile of rags that had once been a uniform. “You Navy?” _

_ “Yeah.” The guy paused. “Um, I mean probably not anymore. I think they kicked me out.” _

_ “Why’d they do that,” Kenji asked. _

_ The guy rubbed the back of his neck, letting out an awkward laugh. “Oh, I think I asked too many questions and annoyed them. I don’t really know--I thought it was just a hazing prank at first but...uh, then they didn’t come back.” A grimace. “So, no, I don’t think I really am Navy, anymore. Dang and they never even paid me for the first few weeks, too. Jerks.” _

_ And despite it all, Kenji laughed, then laughed even more at the confused look the man was sending him. _

_ “You know, new guy, I think you’re alright.” Kenji propped his head on his hand, leaning casually. “So, why’d you join the Navy?” _

_ “Money.” The guy shrugged. “I don’t know, my family’s fishers but that hasn’t really been working out lately with the taxes. Plus, Grandpa used to be in the Navy back in the day and he always talked about it like it was pretty great so, I thought….might as well, you know?” _

_ “Yeah,” Kenji thought back to the Navy that he remembered back when his father was king, “I know. Hey, new guy, what if I could offer you a job that actually remembered to pay you and didn’t strand you on islands?” _

_ The new guy tilted his head, considering. “Uh, well, I guess that would be a nice step up. What’s the job?” _

_ Kenji snorted. “You got a name?” _

_ The new guy beamed. “Koganegawa Kanji.” _

_ “Well, Koganegawa,” Kenji stuck out his hand, “how do you feel about piracy?” _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

An interesting bit about the Futakuchi Islands, the best way to know it was the water rather than the land.

Even back when the Futakuchi Islands were a mere trading piece, passed back and forth every time Nohebi and Hyakuzawa decided to go to war, it always had been the people who actually sailed the waters that knew their secrets. 

Once upon a time, when Kenji spent his life in embroidered clothing, he’d believed that there was nothing that happened in the entire land that his father, the King, didn’t know. And maybe that really was true when it came to the land. But for the seas? It wasn’t the Navy with their clear cut paths and orders. It wasn’t even the merchants that followed the fish or the buyers. It had always been the pirates, the ones who knew how to get lost in them.

An entire war had once been won by pirates rather than kings.

And what did the people do? They stuck that pirate onto the throne and gave him a crown and a kingdom.

Was it any wonder, over generation and generation, those same kings forgot the secrets that once saved them?

Anyway, all of this to say that Kenji had always found this set of caves  _ massively  _ cool and they completely checked off every silly pirate fantasy he had as a kid--so, yeah, when it came to a meeting, of course, he’d choose here.

Was he planning on saying that out loud? No, because Kenji was a captain now and had an image to maintain.

“Wow,” Hinata breathed out beside him, gaping as he stepped out of the rowboat and took in the torches embedded in the cave walls and stretching down like they seemed to go on forever.

Kenji did not preen. “These caves date back to Futakuchi’s Independence War. The pirates used to have it as a base to lose Nohebi ships around. They go on for miles, used to lead out to any side of the island you wanted to go in--if you know the way and bring enough rope.”

“So, what’s you’re saying,” Kuroo said flatly, “is that we  _ didn’t  _ have to sail in through the fucking death trap you led us through.”

Kenji flipped him off without looking back. “I said  _ used to,  _ these caves haven’t been maintained for centuries. Everyone forgot they’re here--”

“Gee, wonder why?”

“--until Mai and I found them again seven or so years ago,” Kenji continued. “Lucky for us, the Navy doesn’t know about them and even if they did, they’d probably be too big a buncha cowards to even try getting here. Safest place we can be for a meeting like this.”

Well, safe except the people who were actually invited. But, Kenji felt pretty confident in his own crew’s ability as well. He glanced back and restrained an eye twitch as it seemed like Hinata was just  _ barely  _ managing to keep that Tendou guy walking with them rather than wondering off into the caves where he’d probably get lost for a week.

Ugh, why was Spade’s Ace so immensely unsettling? 

Kenji guessed it came with the job.

“Who’s Mai,” Lev asked, pulling him from his thoughts. Under his hood, Lev looked as giddy and wide eyed at the tunnels as Kenji felt he absolutely  _ should _ .

“That’s Captain Nametsu to you,” Kenji answered. “She’s--”

“Annoyed,” a voice finished for him right as a hand landed in his collar and pulled him hard to meet brown eyes and pursed lips.

“She’s already here,” Kenji said weakly.

“Cause you’re late,” Nametsu said. “And why we’re talking about that, what about the pisspoor excuse for a letter you sent? ‘Call the pirates. Urgent. I’ll explain later.’ You’re lucky I even got them to show up with  _ that  _ to go on! What the fuck is going on, Kenji?”

“Hi, Mai,” Kenji freed his collar from her grip. “Lovely to see you, Mai. Why, yes, it has been forever, hasn’t it? Good to see you, too. And yes, I am looking great--thanks for noticing.”

Mai took one look behind him. “You look like you’re overworking Aone.”

Kenji scoffed before sputtering. “Why, I have never in  _ my life _ \--The audacity.” He turned. “Tell her Aone!”

Aone stepped forward and scooped Mai up in a brief hug. “Thanks for coming.”

“It was nothing.” Nametsu smiled back at him. “He hasn’t been giving you too much trouble, has he?”

Aone sighed inaudibly.

Kenji’s jaw dropped. He turned to Kuroo. “How dare they? It’s official, I’m absconding to Cards--”

“No,” Kuroo said at the same time Lev went. “Cool!”

“Seriously though, Kenji,” Nametsu shifted. “What’s going on? The letter didn’t give me much to go on. How bad is it? Is the crown planning another price hike? Military protection for merchants? What?”

Kenji sobered. “It’s worse. Much worse.” He drew out the plan from his coat. “They’re planning a full scale operation--they’re even bringing the Iron Wall in. They’re coming to wipe us out-- _ all of us _ .”

Nametsu’s hands gripped the notes. “They can’t do that. Not all of us.”

“Maybe,” Kenji agreed. “But close enough, especially if we plan on splitting to run.”

“As opposed to  _ what _ ,” Nametsu demanded.

Kenji shrugged. “We fight. Together.

_ “Against the entire Navy, _ ” Nametsu hissed. “Kenji, that’s insane! We’ll die.”

“We won’t,” Kenji insisted. “Mai, we won’t, okay? I have….uh, well, I have something, alright? Just believe me, please?” He sighed. “If we try to split up, they’ll wipe out nearly all of us. And that’s not even counting on what it’ll do to the smaller towns that some of the ships are still supporting. Fighting’s the best option we’ve got.”

Nametsu hesitated before shaking her head once. “The rest of the pirates will never go for it.”

“Nothing’s going to work unless they do,” Kenji said. “They have to.”

Someone had to make them listen. Kenji was still just figuring out how that was going to go.

He didn’t…

Well, Kenji had already tried to be something he hadn’t earned  _ once _ . Right now, he only knew that they needed someone.

Nametsu stopped, staring at him like she was really looking this time and Kenji couldn’t help the feeling like she was taking him apart, peeling him back layer by layer until Kenji wasn’t even sure what she’d find.

He had missed her.

“What are you not saying,” Nametsu asked.

He hadn’t missed that.

“A lot,” he admitted. “But, most of it’ll come out in the meeting. And the thing that won’t…. it’s not that important anyway, not anymore.”

And that was true. 

Nametsu sighed, but stepped to the side and finally let him continue through to the main cavern.

He heard the rest of the pirates before he saw them.

A cacophony of noise and shouting, scattered with laughter and fighting threading its way through. And below it all was interest. No one had ever called all of the island’s pirates together before, not in centuries.

No one had ever had a reason.

So, when Kenji walked into the cavern, he tried to hold his back straight like he had a fucking clue what he was doing.

Someone saw him first.

“Oi, Kenji,” called out Captain Hagino in a loud booming voice that immediately drew the attention of everyone in earshot. His was one of the old merchant ships that hadn’t been exactly above board even before the Iron Wall went up and didn’t have trouble making a name as a pirate ship after--ruthless, sharp tongued, and avaricious all at once. “Nametsu tells us you’re the one who dragged us here! Better have a Fates’ made excuse, kid--Navy almost ran me down twice on the way.”

There were a few grunts of agreement from around the space, a few customary curses to the Navy almost as a habit.

Captain Nakada nodded warily, crossing her arms. “Our ship ran into more than the usual patrols, too. All around the capital. They're changing patrols, bringing the ships in.”

“Good for us,” cheered a portly man that Kenji didn’t recognize by face alone. “If the Navy’s pulling in, leaves the sea free for the rest of us, eh?”

The nearest men around him raised their glasses in a toast.

Captain Nakada sniffed. “Depends on why.”

Kenji figured there wasn’t a better chance than that.

“I know why.” He said and his voice cut through the crowd. He held up the plan and passed it to the nearest captain. “This is why I called you. That plan came from the place itself--written by the king’s own Guard Captain. The Navy isn’t backing away; they’re drawing in their forces. They’re hunting us down, every single pirate ship in the ocean.”

Which is about when everything went to shit.

Immediately, there was yelling, pirates charging forward to grab at the paper.

Captain Nakada’s hand gripped on her sword. “They don’t have the men!”

“They do,” Kenji shouted over the noise. “They’re bringing in the Iron Wall, tightening it like a noose until we can’t run!”

“Fuck that, we can always outrun them,” Captain Hagino yelled. “No one knows the waters like us, definitely not the Navy bastards! Who cares who they bring in? We’ve always outrun them before, we’ll do it again!”

A few shouts in agreement went up before--

“This isn’t a tighter patrol, you idiot,” another voice hissed. “This is a  _ massacre _ ! They’re coming to kill us!”

“Why!” what looked to be a younger cabin boy was looking wide-eyed at his captain. “Why now? Why are they coming now?”

“Because King Hotaka’s planning a war,” Kenji said, trying to be heard. “We already have proof that he’s been planning attacks against Cards for years. He doesn’t--” Kenji almost got buried in the rampage before Aone pulled them away-- “King Hotaka have the Navy strength to deal with both us and Cards at the same time! So, he’s dealing with us first while he waits for Cards to weaken!”

_ “Cards?!”  _ said one of the newer pirates, an old merchant finally run out of business. “You’re lying! Cards was one of our allies before the Wall. Why would Hotaka attack them first?” 

Kenji felt a headache. “I’m not--

“How did you even get these plans?” someone shouted. “How do we know you’re not making this up yourself to clear the best routes!?”

Murmurs broke out from the parts of the room that weren’t already yelling.

“Right! How do we know this plan’s even real?!”

“They’re real!” Kenji glared, teeth grinding as behind him Aone moved to guard his back.

Nametsu stood beside him. “Kenji wouldn’t lie! If he says the Navy’s coming for us, then they are!”

The crowd continued to swarm.

“It doesn’t matter,” Captain Nakada spoke up, tone temporarily cutting through. “Whether the plans are real or not, we have to plan for them as if they are. If not, we’re going to get slaughtered.” She shook her head, eyes dark as she thought. “We need to run, come up with escape plans. Hide out until--”

“We can’t  _ hide _ ,” the portly captain yelled. “For how long? We don’t have the provisions! My town  _ needs  _ me if it’s going to survive until the summer and you want me to leave them!”

Voices were starting to raise around them, others agreeing while for others the true terror seemed to still be setting in.

Kenji needed to--

“What choice do we have?!” A panicked voice cried out from the crowd. “Better than being dead! We have to run!”

The yelling got even louder at that.

Kenji need to say something--

_ “Run where?! _ It’s the fucking Navy!”

“What about the towns?”

“They’ll have to fend, we can--”

“Fend! And with the tariffs--”

“The slower ships can’t make--”

“Fates, why are--”

“WE DO HAVE A PLAN!” Kenji shouted and the room went still, all turning to stare at him. Kenji swallowed. “We fight. That’s the only way we’re getting out of this. If we face them together, we can match they’re numbers. We can--”

“Have you fucking lost it,” Captain Hagino interrupted. “You don’t fight the Navy! No one does. They’ll burn us down together! And then what happens, even if we win, what will--”

“We won’t win,” someone called out.

“I know we won’t,” Captain Hagino growled, “I was saying it for--”

“Of course we can’t win,” another voice echoed, “my ship hardly even has the men much less--”

“We wouldn’t stand a chance with--”

“We would,” Kenji shouted, only to be ignored as the voices continued to get louder. “We would have a chance, there’s a plan. We can--”

Other voices kept talking, drowning him out even as Kenji tried to talk over them. 

“FUCKING LISTEN!” Kenji gripped his fist, knuckles going white. “If you shut up, we can--”

There. Was. So. Much. Noise.

Kenji couldn’t even move in the crowd. He couldn’t make out the faces.

“ _ Listen, _ ” Kenji’s voice cracked, throat going hoarse and no one was even looking at him. He bared his teeth, looking around for someone to speak up...someone else to get order…

There was no one.

Only Kenji.

And his voice wasn’t enough to rise over the crowd.

Kenji’s breathing got quicker, pulse echoing and he couldn’t hear it over the shouting or the fights breaking out across the cavern.

It never even stood a chance.

“Kenji,” Nametsu grabbed his arm. “This isn’t working.”

Kenji knew that. He could see it.

...and, of course, it wasn’t working. All at once, Kenji was still that eleven year old prince being pushed out of his own palace and never knowing what he’d done wrong--that final mistake that made him unworthy, until even Otsuka turned on him. 

But, that wasn’t right.

Kenji knew better now. It was never  _ one  _ mistake that went wrong. 

He’d tried to tell Aone for years and years, only to have Aone refuse to listen. But, Kenji  _ knew.  _ Worthiness wasn’t something you were born into. No one was worthy just for being born with a crown. Worthiness was something earned.

And Kenji never had measured up.

The meeting he set up was falling apart around him--the one they  _ needed _ to work--and Kenji was reminded of running across castle stone in the middle of the night with his own guards chasing after him.

….and Kenji had no clue what the fuck he was doing.

  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Yachi and Yamaguchi were both looking entirely too serious.

How frustrating, didn’t they know that Tsukishima was supposed to be the serious one?

“Are you sure,” Yachi asked.

“Well, I suppose not absolutely,” Tsukishima said calmly. “But, the pieces fit. We know the Hawks think two of our Aces are dead. We know that they’ve been sowing rumors and dissent in the kingdoms for months now. We know they’ve been observing us for who knows how long plus we know that they have a Blood Mage in their service. And, finally, we know their leader has gone into hiding.”

He shrugged. “The Hearts Spring Festival is the next opportunity to have most of the Suits in the same place and in public. Planning their next move there is only logical.”

“Then, why are you  _ going _ ,” Yamaguchi asked, voice strained. 

“Because we have to,” Tsukishima said simply. “To cancel risks inflaming the rumors of dissent between kingdoms. And it limits out Suits’ ability to come up with our next play. If the Hawks’ plan is to divide up Cards--either through rumor or murder--canceling the annual Spring Festival helps them without even making them lift a finger.” An eye roll. “And if there’s one thing I hate it’s doing our enemy’s work for them.”

Yachi was chewing on her lip, not looking like she agreed, while Yamaguchi was glancing between her and Tsukishima with an expression almost pleading.

“Quit looking like that,” Tsukishima told them. “It’s Hearts. We’re not exactly walking unarmed to the lion’s den. The benefit is that everyone knows the festivals are targets. We can plan--and, even better, it’s  _ our  _ country. Any attack they plan, we already have the advantage and this time they lack their own advantage of surprise.” He held up a letter. “Iwaizumi already wrote about the new defensive measures and expansion of their guards. And, from what Suga and Daichi are talking about, I doubt Spades isn’t showing up empty handed either.”

Yachi nodded, shoulders relaxing slightly. “So, it’s a trap for them, then? Cards knows the Hawks are planning something for the festival, so we’re using it as a trap?”

“I’d more say it’s a warning...or possibly a test.” Tsukishima tapped his finger on his desk. “Whatever move they make--or don’t make--will tell us a little more on who we’re dealing with and any more information we have chips at their advantage. For a fringe extremist group like the Hawks, they know they can’t fight in numbers so surprise is their next best thing. The more we know and the longer this drags out, the more they’re in danger of losing.” Tsukishima frowned. “Of course, normally we’d have a far more effective means of getting information rather than waiting for an attack; but, unfortunately….well, I think we all know our normal method isn’t available right now.”

Neither Yachi or Yamaguchi could argue with that.

“So….,” Yamaguchi started, “that’s really it, Kei? You really think it won’t be that bad.”

“Oh no, I still definitely think there's  _ something _ off.” Tsukishima tsked. “I’m also just tired of banging my head against a wall trying to figure out what it is.” He leaned back and focused. “Anyway, I didn’t ask both of you to come to talk about what’s going to happen in Hearts.”

Yachi got it first. “If we’re the ones staying, then we’re on Spades’ defense.”

“Exactly.” Tsukishima nodded. “It’s a low risk, I think; but, we’re also the only kingdom that’s sending  _ all  _ of our Suit to Hearts. And the Hawks know that. That’s why I’m leaving you two, Daichi, and the spies here to cover defense.”

Yachi took a breath before nodding.

Yamaguchi meanwhile was frowning. “....so, not with you.”

Tsukishima didn’t pretend he didn’t know what he meant.

“Spades is a lower risk than the festival,” Tsukishima repeated. “And I want our best outside the Suits still here.”

What he didn’t say:

That Spades would need the two of them….if their Suit didn’t come back. Even in the absence of a Suit, the kingdom could still stand if it had the people strong enough to defend it and those smart enough to keep a level head.

Even without the Suit, the kingdom could endure. It could wait.

It was almost funny, actually. For the most powerful people in the country, the Suits’ position itself was so obviously replaceable. More Suit members could always be born, after all. The kingdom would go on as long as they kept it together until then.

Suits were replaceable, even if the people behind the position weren’t.

Most days the thought was almost comforting--a reminder that even the worst case scenario wasn’t the  _ worst _ .

Now…

Hmmm, well, Tsukishima had recently been seeing a number of things in a different light.

Yamaguchi was still watching him carefully.

What Tsukishima also didn’t say:

_ I want you to be safe. _

Tsukishima looked back. “Sorry, I know I said I’d take you to a festival.”

“Ah,” Yamaguchi heard the part he didn’t say. “Well, there’s always the next one.” He cleared his throat. “Bring me to the next one, alright?”

“Promise,” Tsukishima said softly.

“Tsuki…” Yachi frowned. “About the festival, what if Akiteru is there? What will you do, then?”

Tsukishima’s smile was not a pleasant thing. “I hope he is.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

Kenji took in a breath and held it, listening to the  _ drip, drip, drip  _ echoing in the tunnels.

“Giving up?”

Kenji glanced up and couldn’t even bother his usual glare. “Just needed a breather.”

That was a lie.

“Sure,” Kuroo shrugged like he didn’t believe him either. “Guess I can’t blame you for giving up. Entire place is a madhouse. I should have expected that from  _ pirates _ ; but, still...I was a minute away from having Lev blow the roof off the place when you finally stormed out.”

Kenji pressed the heel of his palm to his head. “Where’s Aone?”

“How should I know,” Kuroo said. “You’re the one he’s practically attached at the hip with.”

Kenji sighed.

If Aone wasn’t here, it meant he was managing the crew. Which  _ good  _ because someone needed to watch out for them--sure, they knew how to handle a fight but that didn’t mean they had to be in one--and Kenji...Kenji didn’t think he was doing great at handling people right now.

Even himself.

“How’d you manage that, by the way,” Kuroo asked.

“What?”

“You and Aone,” Kuroo leaned against the opposite wall. “Trust me, I know the whole unrelenting devotion to a King thing--even though mine’s, uh, more complicated. But, from what I keep hearing, you’re not a prince anymore. So, why’s he still here?”

“Fuck if I know?” Kenji threw his hands up. “I keep telling him he can go and he keeps  _ not listening _ . I don’t know--,” he let out a breath, “it’s probably just a loyalty thing. His family’s served the Futakuchi line for years. So maybe it’s just habit.”

“That’s stupid,” Kuroo said.

Kenji’s eye twitched. Not because he didn’t agree--not because he hadn’t argued that to Aone before--but only  _ he  _ got to question Aone’s life pursuits like that. That was how things worked.

“Says the Ace,” Kenji threw back.

“That’s why I’m saying it,” Kuroo said flatly. “I’m not an Ace for the King, I’m an Ace for the  _ kingdom.  _ I’m  _ Kenma’s  _ Ace.” His back straightened. “I wouldn’t serve anyone else,  _ no one. _ That’s why it’s my fate.”

How nice to be so sure. Sometimes, Kenji really did envy Cards way of handling rulers. At least, it sounded simple.

Kuroo pushed off the wall, patting Kenji’s back as he went. “So, think about what that means for you because Aone doesn’t seem like the guy to pick up bad habits--even when they’re annoying assholes like you.”

Kenji watched him walk off.

“Where are you going,” he asked.

Kuroo waved a hand, not even looking back. “To make sure Lev hasn’t done anything insane yet--it’s always a matter of time.”

That was probably fair from everything Kenji’d seen so far.

He shook his head and went back to his totally-not-brooding, not surprised when he heard another pair of footsteps a minute later.

“Aone, are--,” Kenji looked up when other steps joined the first.

He stared.

His crew, all of them with Aone in the front, came up around him and sat against the tunnel.

“Well, that went to shit fast,” Fukiage huffed and it almost sounded like a laugh. “Figured we’d at least get one full minute of shock in before they started shouting.”

“Mhm, my ears hurt,” Koganegawa complained, sprawling out in the middle of the cave. “Oh, but here’s a lot more quiet. Captain always finds the best places to rest.”

Kenji blinked. “What are you doing out here?”

“I see.” Obara elbowed him. “So,  _ you _ got out and were going to leave the rest of us to fend for ourselves. Real nice, Captain.”

Sakunami laughed, arms wrapped around his legs. “Captain wouldn’t do that.”

“He’d absolutely do that. Have you met him?”

“Nah, not to me.” Sakunami’s grin widened. “Because I’m his favorite.”

“Wait,” Koganegawa said, “I thought he said Fukiage was his favorite.”

“If anyone it’s Onagawa,” Fukiage complained.

Onagawa gave a peace sign without bothering to look up.

“It’s definitely Aone.” Obara smirked. “I mean unless you mean--”

“Mai,” Sakunami finished in a singsong and Fukiage snickered with him.

Kenji just watched them, feeling oddly baffled by the whole thing. Aone stood at his back, Moniwa beside him and smiling.

“So, for real,” Sakunami looked up at him. “What’s the next plan, Captain?”

“What,” Kenji said.

Obara took it up. “He means that the rest of the pirates are a mess so, apparently, we’re doing this ourselves. How are we handling the Hotaka without taking care of the Navy first?”

“What are you….,” Kenji stopped himself and shook his head, trying to clear it. 

Fukiage shrugged. “Well, Captain and Aone already snuck into the palace once so how hard can it really be to sneak in a pile of us?”

“That was for a prison break, not going after the  _ king _ ,” Sakunami argued.

Onagawa shrugged. “I’ll take look out.”

“Cool,” Koganegawa popped back up, “then, I can--”

“What are you talking about,” Kenji interrupted.

And now it was them staring at him.

Sakunami tilted his head. “How to stop the war without the rest of the pirates? Duh.”

“Though really they should owe us one,” Fukiage grumbled. “Saving their asses, too.”

“We’re not--” Kenji rubbed at his headache. “Why do you think we’re taking on Hotaka  _ alone _ ? This was our shot!”

“What are  _ you _ talking about?” Koganegawa looked at him like he was crazy. “Of course, we’re not going to stop here! It’s Futakuchi! It’s home!”

They all were looking at him. And Kenji--it wasn’t the same as earlier, the panic of not knowing what to do, but still Kenji felt like he’d missed a step somewhere. Like standing on a deck in a storm and finding his balance.

He stared at them. “Is this because….” He frowned. “You know, right? You have to--with Moniwa here and then the Cards’ guys. You have to know I used to be the prince. Is that why? Because I don’t...I’m not that person anymore. I never was.”

The crew looked at each other.

“Shit, I thought we weren’t supposed to mention the prince thing,” Koganegawa whispered before Sakunami elbowed him. “Ow!

Sakunami gave him a warning glare before turning up to Kenji and frowning. “No, that’s not why….we thought it was obvious why, honestly.”

Obvious?

Kenji didn’t know what about this was supposed to be obvious. “Then, why do you think  _ we’re  _ the ones who can help Futakuchi?”

There was a long pause.

“Because it’s what we always do,” Obara said in the silence. “We always help. We help feed the towns.”

“We keep track of the Navy patrols to warn the others,” Sakunami added.

Fukiage nodded. “We save people from the guards.”

“We save other country’s people from guards” Onagawa said. “Apparently.”

Koganegawa grinned. “And you find poor marooned people before the storm.”

“So, yeah,” Obara finished. “ _ Of course, _ we’re helping. But, what’s the plan, Captain?”

Kenji tried to swallow and found he couldn’t.

He looked up at Aone, who even without saying anything somehow was managing to give off a very satisfied demeanor.

….oh, and maybe there was still something Kenji could do.

So, what’s the plan?

Kenji stood up.

“Come on, we’re going back,” he told the rest of them.

“I’ll go get the rowboats,” Oganegawa muttered.

“Don’t bother yet,” Kenji said, jerking his thumb back at the main cavern where the shouting still echoed. “I meant we’re going back there.” He smirked. “And for the record, I’m hurt that you all thought I’d give up so easily. You guys should know I’m  _ much  _ more annoying than that.”

His crew was blinking up with him and starting to grin in a way that was just going to get so, so embarrassing for Kenji if he thought about it for so long. So, instead, he shooed all of them forward. “Go, find us a path to get through, got it? As close to the center as I can get.”

He breathed in. “I want everyone to hear.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

It wasn’t supposed to turn out this way.

The figure hidden in the back of the wagon, wrapped his hood a little bit tighter as he watched the rolling hills of Spades start to even out.

He remembered this part. 

Not much of it, he’d only been six when his parents pulled him onto a boat to another country, one brother short. But, he still remembered how strange it was to look out at the islands and see rocks and cliffs instead of the green of farmlands.

None of it was what he wanted.

But, then again, it hadn’t been in a very, very long time.

A bang on the other side of the wagon made him jerk.

“Oi, Mage,” a rough voice called out. “Still alive back there or you fall out in the last town?”

The two wagon drivers laughed loudly at their own jokes and Akiteru managed a weak knock back in return.

The Hawks.

Akiteru didn’t really like them, truth be told. They were harsh, violent, angry--only a thin veneer covering a desperate hunger for power. There’s something that Akiteru had learned over the years. Those that seemed most desperate were the quickest to  _ lose _ their power. Likely to someone else with more control.

Akiteru thought about sickness and hunger and an open hand reaching out to help him up.

He shuddered. 

Desperation made for terrible choices and magic more often than not was the tool that delivered it.

Akiteru hated magic. He  _ hated  _ it. Hated how it coiled under his skin and would reach out across the world and take, take, take all the while demanding people be thankful for what it stole.

Magic was the reason his parents left his brother in a castle, before Kei was even old enough to remember them.

Magic was the reason no one ever thought it was wrong that children were Marked at birth, stolen from their families, and forced into a fate no one ever asked them if they wanted.

The magic of the Fates was the cruelest magic of all and blood magic only a few steps better.

And Kei could hate him all he wanted, could call him a fool and a coward. That was fine. Akiteru was under no illusions that what he’d done with his own magic was any better than what the Fates did to his brother.

But once...Akiteru had been desperate.

If he was honest, he still was.

And desperation made for terrible choices.

Akiteru watched from the back of the wagon as the rolling hills of Spades were changed for the jagged stone of Hearts’ shores.

And whatever came after, Akiteru already had stained his hands too far to hide away.

For better or worse, he was home.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


\-------

When Kenji walked back into the cavern, it was still utter chaos.

Fist fights and screaming matches were breaking out all through the space, the rest either trying to get out of the way or join in. It was lucky no one had pulled out a sword.

Kenji sighed.

Okay, first things first.

He glanced at Moniwa. “Lend a hand and make it loud?”

Moniwa blinked before his eyes widened. “Oh. Got it.”

And, then, Moniwa snapped and the entire cavern exploded like someone had set off cannons, sparks flying off the walls and the entire air going white in bright flashes.

The fighting stopped and all that was left was dead silence.

Kenji smiled. Sometimes, it was good to have a few Mages on his side.

_ “The Fuck,”  _ Captain Hagino complained, holding his ear and clearly gearing up for another argument.

Kenji didn’t give him a chance. “Now that I’ve got your attention, let’s move on to our starting goal.” His hand slammed down on the makeshift table. “We attack the Navy first.”

There were the usual outcries; but, this time, Kenji headed them off.

“We attack first and we attack together,” Kenji continued, voice striding over the rest. “Together, we can match the Navy’s ships one to one and everyone knows, between us and the Navy, who knows the oceans better. Half the Navy’s currently made from assholes looking for the power trip or new recruits that’ve barely learned how to stand on a ship much less fight. Push comes to shove, if we give them the choice, they’ll run rather than fight.” He took a breath. “Especially if they think they’ll lose.”

“And why would they think that?” Captain Nakada narrowed her eyes. “We might have better men; but, the Navy’s the one with supplies. Every ship is equipped with canons, every man with a sword. Our way is to strike quick and get out. Put in a fair open fight and the Navy wins every time.”

There were murmurs of agreement.

Kenji smirked. “Now who the fuck said we’d be fighting fair?” He cleared his throat. “Or alone.” 

He pointed to Moniwa. “This is Kaname Moniwa, the  _ former _ personal Mage to King Hotaka and the best Mage in the entire kingdom.” He gestured to Lev and Tendou, both covered in hoods. “And he brought friends. We all know what one powerful Mage can do, now imagine three.”

“Besides that,” Kenji said, “we also have an offer of personal assistance from King Yudai of Hyakuzawa. He’ll be fighting with us.”

If the Mages caused whispers, then that definitely did.

The same older merchant form before leaned forward. “Hyakuzawa is bringing their men. Then, this isn’t a battle between us and the Navy; it’s already a war. Hyakuzawa’s trying to take back the islands.”

Kenji shook his head. “Not the Hyakuzawan navy--just a small fleet. It’s not an invasion, just an offer of alliance to….whatever comes after.”

And this was the second hard part; but, at least it hadn’t broken down into yelling yet.

“After,” Nametsu asked and even speaking lowly, the word seemed to echo around the room.

“After,” Kenji confirmed and drew up his shoulders. “King Hotaka’s not fit to rule. He hasn’t been for years. Look around you. Merchants are being run out of business, the smaller towns are starving from his taxes, his guards can kill people in the street and no one will stop them, and now he’s driving us into a war with what used to be our closest ally.” Kenji’s fist clenched white. “This isn’t what Futakuchi should be. It’s not what we  _ are. _ ”

Kenji caught Aone’s eye on the side and tried to breathe.

This was it.

“None of this will mean anything if Hotaka rebuilds his forces and attacks us again in a few months,” Kenji said plainly. “We fight the Navy upfront and use the opening to get in the palace and take down Hotaka, too. We already have one of the guards that’s working to get us in. We take the capital and the crown.”

Quiet.

“We….,” Captain Hagino shook his head, trying to clear it, “....Kenji, you’re talking about overthrowing a  _ king _ . Our King.”

“No, I’m talking about taking down a man,” Kenji disagreed. “He’s never been  _ our _ king.”

No one said anything. Honestly, it didn’t seem like anyone could even find what to say to that, just staring at Kenji with wide eyes.

“We can win,” Kenji said and found the words for them. “This is what Futakuchi is. Our islands weren’t made to bend to the wishes of kings. We were founded by  _ pirates.  _ And will be founded again. An Iron Wall can be broken--we break it down brick by brick. We force our way together. And, then, we remake our country into what it  _ should  _ be. And we don’t ever let anyone forget again that the right to lead us is  _ earned _ .” He stared forward. “It’s never freely given.”

There wasn’t any one word. There was no visible shift, no one second to point to. But, Kenji could  _ feel _ it, like the pull of the tides.

They were listening.

“....who would lead after,” Nametsu asked.

“Who the people choose,” Kenji said, flatout ignoring Aone’s look this time. If their plan succeeded, the Futakuchi royal line wouldn’t hold the power. Kenji wouldn’t  _ be _ a prince anymore, not by anyone’s definition.

It was a new start.

Just like it should be.

“Who we choose,” Kenji continued. “We’ve done this before, why not again? We chose our leader once we win the war.”

Kenji started seeing some nods in the crowd, people turning to whisper to their neighbors, a frail sense of hope running through the room.

Kenji wasn’t worried.

Not if they were listening. They were pirates, after all; they knew how to strike once the opportunity was there.

And they’d always been survivors.

Which reminded him…

“Oh, and another thing.” Kenji smirked. “I wouldn’t worry about the Navy’s canons. That won’t be a problem.” He took one final look out into the crowd.

“So, who wants to hear my plan?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ....this chapter was supposed to be just one scene in my original plan...I don't even know how it got this long.
> 
> Anyway, apologies that this one is much later than intended. I am currently catching up on like everything following a busy week at work/school so I'm responding to comments tomorrow. Until then, please know I appreciate all of your support so much and am always very appreciative that ya'll have taken the time to read this fic :)
> 
> Up next is the start of the finale chapters  
> Post date: roughly two weeks but I'm catching up with stuff right now so don't want to put a specific date. Mar. 13-14 is still a good estimate
> 
> Feel free to find me on tumblr: https://greycappedjester.tumblr.com/


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